Over two dozen Democratic House members have written a letter to Elon Musk, accusing his social media platform, X (formerly Twitter), of profiting from misinformation connected to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
What Happened: In their letter, the lawmakers alleged that X has not adhered to its own policies on stemming misinformation and spreading ‘terroristic propaganda videos,’ thereby monetizing such content, reported The Washington Post.
They have demanded explanations for why posts violating the company’s policy against extremist content were distributed widely. The signatories have also asked for all written communications concerning content moderation related to Hamas by Dec. 1.
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“In addition to profiting off violent content by a terrorist organization, X has financially benefited from the spread of demonstrably false and misleading content as well,” the letter read.
It further stated, “While many news outlets and humanitarian organizations, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, many of the United Nations’ agencies, and the Palestine Red Crescent Society, which participates in the verified user option, continue to use X to share critical news and updates, the platform has become a hotbed of misinformation and terrorist propaganda.”
Among the lawmakers who signed the letter, there were Reps. Daniel S. Goldman (D-N.Y.), Jamie B. Raskin (D-Md.), Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) and Jasmine Crockett (D-Tex.).
Why It Matters: This is not the first time Musk’s X has been in the spotlight for handling misinformation.
Earlier this year, Twitter’s former global news chair and executive director of Aspen Digital at The Aspen Institute, Vivian Schiller, criticized X for hosting misleading information during the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
The critique from the lawmakers also comes after X halved its team responsible for limiting disinformation around elections, despite Musk’s previous promise to expand it.
In October this year, X explained its use of the Community Notes feature to offer context on posts related to the Israel-Hamas war, but the feature came under scrutiny for erroneously flagging a graphic video shared by Donald Trump Jr.
The controversy adds to the growing criticism of Musk’s handling of X, coming on the heels of his endorsement of a contentious antisemitic post, which was widely condemned, including by the White House.
Photo by Angga Budhiyanto on Shutterstock
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