--- title: "Elon Musk Demands “Criminal Prosecution” of People Who Won’t Give Him Money" description: "  X-formerly-Twitter owner Elon Musk is very unhappy with advertisers, who are opting out of giving him money. In fact, Musk is calling for them to be criminally prosecuted as a result. \"Hopefully, some states will consider criminal prosecution,\" he tweeted, responding to a video of conservative pundit Ben Shapiro accusing \"legacy media\" of lying […]" date: "2024-07-12" modified: "2024-07-12" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/elon-musk-demands-criminal-prosecution-advertisers" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "advertising" - "elon musk" - "hate speech" - "twitter" --- # Elon Musk Demands “Criminal Prosecution” of People Who Won’t Give Him Money ![X-formerly-Twitter owner Elon Musk is very unhappy with advertisers, who are opting out of giving him money.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* X-formerly-Twitter owner Elon Musk is very unhappy with advertisers, who are opting out of giving him money. In fact, Musk — the self-proclaimed "free speech absolutist" — is calling for them to be criminally prosecuted for, um, exercising the mild free speech of not paying him. "Hopefully, some states will consider criminal prosecution," he [tweeted](), responding to a video of conservative pundit Ben Shapiro accusing "legacy media" of lying to "preserve left-leaning narratives." Shapiro was testifying in front of a House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary, which [released a report]() this week, accusing the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) of conspiring to suppress conservative voices on the internet, an increasingly common talking point among Republicans. Now that Musk has surrounded himself with pundits sympathetic to his increasingly right-wing beliefs, he was quick to chime in. "Extremely concerning!" Musk [tweeted in response]() to the report. "Having seen the evidence unearthed today by Congress, X has no choice but to file suit against the perpetrators and collaborators in the advertising boycott racket," he [wrote](). Basically, Musk essentially wants it to be illegal for companies to refuse to advertise on his platform. But who could blame them for [leaving in droves]() following his [chaotic $44 billion acquisition]() in 2022? The company has quickly turned into a cesspool of disinformation and hate speech — a nosedive accelerated by Musk's [own racist tirades](). And it's not just advertisers. Data suggests [users are also jumping ship]() in droves. Meanwhile, Musk has attempted to stem the bleeding by [begging advertisers]() to return. That's despite [quite literally telling them to "go fuck yourselves]()" during the *New York Times* DealBook Summit last year. It's a precarious situation for the company, which has already been reeling from plummeting revenue. Last month, [*Bloomberg* reported]() that ad revenues were down almost 40 percent in the first half of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. And Musk's kneejerk lawsuits aimed at nonprofits that fight hate speech online aren't going well, either. The infamously litigious CEO had been accusing these groups of scaring away advertisers — somehow forgetting his own role in the exodus. His suit against the Center for Countering Digital Hate [was dismissed in March](), for example, with a judge finding that Musk was trying to "punish" the group for exercising free speech. Another lawsuit he filed against Media Matters for America is scheduled for a trial in April next year — but the nonprofit maintains that the complaint is [already dead in the water](). Whether Congress will agree with Musk's provocative insinuation that advertisers who boycott X should be criminally prosecuted remains dubious at best. For its part, GARM maintains that it didn't do anything wrong, [telling *Ars Technica*]() in a statement that it "has continually demonstrated that it will cooperate with the House Judiciary Committee in good faith" and that it remains "steadfast in the conviction that GARM enhances transparency in previously opaque practices relative to ad placements in digital social media." The situation is especially awkward for X CEO Linda Yaccarino, who has historically supported GARM, a flagship partner of the World Economic Forum, to which she has strong ties. Now, Yaccarino is desperately trying to pick up the pieces and put out Musk's fires. On July 1, X [announced]() that it had "reinstated our relationship" with GARM. "X is committed to the safety of our global town square and proud to be part of the GARM community!" Whether Musk would agree with that sentiment remains to be seen. **More on X:** *[Elon Musk Begs Advertisers to Return as Twitter's Revenue Plunges]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()