Advertising on X fell 60% in September and revenue has sunk, according to a recent report by Bloomberg News. In July, the company's ad revenue had plunged 50%, while also noting its heavy debt load.

In September, global web traffic on the site dropped 14%, according to a report by Simiilarweb. Overall traffic on X has sunk nearly 7% through the first nine months of 2023 compared with the year-ago period, the market research firm said in a recent report, while noting that social media usage is down across the board.

Musk's move to endorse antisemitic ideas associated with White supremacists is also unsettling shareholders in Tesla, the electric car makers he started. Tesla investors are "frustrated and dismayed" by this latest controversy, according to Wedbush analyst Dan Ives.

"It was a dark day for Musk and Tesla with this X post heard around the world," Ives said in an email. "[L]ongtime shareholders are asking what is next? We see no changes to Musk leadership, but this is a black eye that will not be forgotten by many."

Yaccarino on Thursday sought to dilute the fallout from Musk's comments, saying in a post on X that the company has "been extremely clear about our efforts to combat antisemitism and discrimination. There's no place for it anywhere in the world — it's ugly and wrong. Full stop."

Musk's Controversial Statement

Facebook cofounder Dustin Moskovitz has called for the resignation of Musk, the Chief Technology Officer at X, following his recent support for an antisemitic post on the platform. Moskovitz believes that X's CEO, Yaccarino, is facing a significant decision in deciding whether to terminate Musk or risk losing more advertisers.

Musk's Statement and Backlash

Musk, who is currently the world's richest person, received backlash after expressing support for an antisemitic post on X. He referred to the post as "the actual truth," which caused outrage among users.

The original post claimed that Jewish people are promoting hatred against white individuals, despite advocating against such hatred themselves. Musk endorsed this statement and also criticized the Anti-Defamation League, an organization that fights against hate towards Jewish people. Musk accused the ADL of unfairly attacking the majority of the West, even though the majority supports Jewish people and Israel. He argued that the ADL avoids criticizing minority groups, which he believes are the primary threat.

This original post aligns with antisemitic conspiracy theories that suggest Jewish people aim to weaken and replace white majorities by bringing in minority groups. Notorious convicted murderer Robert Bowers, who killed 11 people at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh in 2018, was among those who expressed similar beliefs online.

At the same time, tensions are rising due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, resulting in conflicts on U.S. college campuses involving alleged antisemitic and anti-Muslim incidents. Recent data released by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has shown a significant increase in antisemitic incidents across the United States since the start of the war.

Reports of Advertisements Next to Nazi Content

According to a report by Media Matters, major advertisers such as IBM, Apple, Oracle, and Comcast's Xfinity have had their advertisements appear alongside Nazi-themed content on X. This revelation has caused significant concern and backlash.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, expressed his anger towards Media Matters on X, stating, "Media Matters is an evil organization." Musk's comment has further fueled the controversy surrounding the issue.

In response to the growing concern over disinformation and hate speech, the European Commission has announced that it will halt advertising on X and all other social media networks. The decision is based on the recent alarming increase in these issues, although the European Commission clarified that their decision was not specifically targeted at X.

A spokesperson for the European Commission stated, "This is about advertisement campaigns - for these, we continuously assess and evaluate the media environment for our campaigns in view of our communication objectives."