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‘We tried peace… now it’s war’: Elon Musk lawyers up in the fight for free speech

August 6, 2024 | | Print Article

Taking a stand to preserve the public town square, Elon Musk and X CEO Linad Yaccarino affirmed free speech absolutism with an antitrust lawsuit.

“We tried peace for 2 years, now it is war.”

Since acquiring the platform then known as Twitter and entering its headquarters hauling a pun, the world’s richest man has demonstrated a commitment to combat censorship and suppression. Tuesday, following a report of an alleged coordinated effort to put a financial thumb on the scales of discourse, X confirmed they were taking the Global Alliance for Responsible Media and its key members to court.

“These organizations targeted our company, and you, our users,” said Yaccarino in a video statement that covered the key points of an open letter to advertisers. “No small group of people should be able to monopolize what gets monetized.”

In that letter, the CEO expressed, “Every day, hundreds of millions of people come to X to be part of the only global, real-time conversation. They come to share their thoughts and hear others. To share their content and see more. To debate and be debated. To entertain and be entertained. To inspire and be inspired. There is no substitute for X.”

“After a career in media and advertising, I thought I had seen everything. Then I read the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee’s report entitled ‘GARM’s (Global Alliance for Responsible Media) Harm’ last month. The report disclosed that their investigation had found evidence of an illegal boycott against many companies, including X,” she said before citing the findings.

According to the report from the House Judiciary Committee, “Evidence obtained by the Committee shows that GARM and its members directly organized boycotts and used other indirect tactics to target disfavored platforms, content creators, and news organizations in an effort to demonetize and, in effect, limit certain choices for consumers.”

“To put it simply,” Yaccarino summarized, “people are hurt when the marketplace of ideas is undermined and some viewpoints are not funded over others as part of an illegal boycott. This behavior is a stain on a great industry, and cannot be allowed to continue.”

Sharing the letter on X, Musk asserted, “We tried peace for 2 years, now it is war.”

The platform’s CEO went on to note as they filed their complaint in Texas, “That is why, X has filed an antitrust lawsuit against the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), and GARM members CVS Health, Mars, Orsted and Unilever. This is not a decision we took lightly, but it is a direct consequence of their actions.”

“To those who broke the law, we say enough is enough,” she continued. “We are compelled to seek justice for the harm that has been done by these and potentially additional defendants, depending what the legal process reveals.”

Last week, House Judiciary Committee chair Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan submitted a letter to 40 companies and said, “The Committee’s oversight has shown that GARM has deviated far from its original intent, and has collectively used its immense market power to demonetize voices and viewpoints the group disagrees with — even intervening in situations that do not have a so-called ‘brand safety’ concern.”

The members of GARM, according to the Judiciary Committee report, control 90% of global marketing spending or roughly $1 trillion annually.

However, WFA spokesperson Will Gilroy contended that the allegations were “unfounded” in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Membership of GARM is entirely voluntary. Its frameworks and tools are intentionally broad, and individual companies are free to review, adopt, modify, or reject them, as they see fit.”

“The decision where and when to advertise is always down to the individual advertiser, in collaborations with their agency partners where relevant,” said Gilroy. “Recent engagement with industry leaders suggests that GARM’s work remains valuable and increasingly relevant as digital media continues to develop. As such, GARM will continue to live up to its commitment to help allow its members to drive more responsible marketing practices.”

The assurances did little to temper the call to challenge the legality of what had been done in court and, as the video platform Rumble announced they were joining in the lawsuit, Musk encouraged, “Everyone who has been boycotted should file a lawsuit in every country they’ve been boycotted.”

Kevin Haggerty
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