Media Matters must face X’s lawsuit over report about ads next to extremist posts
By Mike Scarcella
Aug 30 (Reuters) -A federal judge in Texas has refused to dismiss a lawsuit by Elon Musk’s social media company X accusing watchdog Media Matters of disparaging the platform in a report that said the site had placed ads for major brands next to extremist content.
In a Thursday decision, U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Fort Worth said X could pursue federal claims that Media Matters “knowingly and maliciously fabricated side-by-side images” of major advertisers next to neo-Nazi content, driving some companies to stop or pause their spend on the site.
O'Connor rejected Media Matter's arguments for dismissal, including that it can’t be liable for business disparagement by reporting truthful statements. O'Connor said X had sufficiently alleged that Media Matters had acted with “actual malice” based on statements criticizing the platform.
X did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Nor did Washington, D.C.-based Media Matters, a liberal advocacy group, which has called the lawsuit meritless and defended what it said was an “accurate report on the platform’s extremism.”
Ad revenue on X, formerly Twitter, fell after Musk purchased the site in 2022 for $44 billion. Musk’s X soon faced scrutiny over lax content moderation, as the site reinstated once-suspended accounts and brands grew concerned over their ads appearing next to inappropriate content.
The Media Matters report at the center of X’s lawsuit was published online in November. The organization said it found advertisements by IBM, Apple, Oracle and Comcast's Xfinity placed alongside posts touting Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party.
The report came a day after Musk in a post on X agreed with a user who falsely claimed Jewish people were stoking hatred against white people. Musk said that user was speaking "the actual truth." Musk later apologized.
X sued Media Matters in November in federal court in Fort Worth, which has become a favorite destination for conservatives seeking to block Democratic-backed policies. The lawsuit alleged the Media Matters report was published “with the intention of harming X and its business.”
In seeking dismissal, Media Matters said in a filing that O'Connor, who was appointed by former Republican President George W. Bush, held no power to hear the lawsuit in Texas because the reporting and publishing activity at issue was not tied to the state or otherwise focused on its residents.
O’Connor said the report’s "targeting" of Texas-based companies AT&T and Oracle was enough to give the court jurisdiction to consider the lawsuit.
The case is X v. Media Matters, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, No. 4:23-cv-01175.
For X: Judd Stone of Stone Hilton and John Sullivan of SL Law
For Media Matters: Theodore Boutrous, Amer Ahmed and Andrew LeGrand of Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and Abha Khanna and Aria Branch of Elias Law Group
Read more:
Musk appeal calls defamation lawsuit over extremist street brawl 'baseless'
Media Matters loses bid to force judge's recusal in X's lawsuit
Texas judge in lawsuit by Musk's X against advertisers exits case
Reporting by Mike Scarcella
Activos relacionados
Últimas noticias
Descargo de responsabilidades: Cada una de las entidades de XM Group proporciona un servicio de solo ejecución y acceso a nuestra plataforma de trading online, permitiendo a una persona ver o usar el contenido disponible en o a través del sitio web, sin intención de cambiarlo ni ampliarlo. Dicho acceso y uso están sujetos en todo momento a: (i) Términos y Condiciones; (ii) Advertencias de riesgo; y (iii) Descargo completo de responsabilidades. Por lo tanto, dicho contenido se proporciona exclusivamente como información general. En particular, por favor tenga en cuenta que, los contenidos de nuestra plataforma de trading online no son ni solicitud ni una oferta para entrar a realizar transacciones en los mercados financieros. Operar en cualquier mercado financiero implica un nivel de riesgo significativo para su capital.
Todo el material publicado en nuestra plataforma de trading online tiene únicamente fines educativos/informativos y no contiene –y no debe considerarse que contenga– asesoramiento ni recomendaciones financieras, tributarias o de inversión, ni un registro de nuestros precios de trading, ni una oferta ni solicitud de transacción con instrumentos financieros ni promociones financieras no solicitadas.
Cualquier contenido de terceros, así como el contenido preparado por XM, como por ejemplo opiniones, noticias, investigaciones, análisis, precios, otras informaciones o enlaces a sitios de terceros que figuran en este sitio web se proporcionan “tal cual”, como comentarios generales del mercado y no constituyen un asesoramiento en materia de inversión. En la medida en que cualquier contenido se interprete como investigación de inversión, usted debe tener en cuenta y aceptar que dicho contenido no fue concebido ni elaborado de acuerdo con los requisitos legales diseñados para promover la independencia en materia de investigación de inversiones y, por tanto, se considera como una comunicación comercial en virtud de las leyes y regulaciones pertinentes. Por favor, asegúrese de haber leído y comprendido nuestro Aviso sobre investigación de inversión no independiente y advertencia de riesgo en relación con la información anterior, al que se puede acceder aquí.