No platform is created equal, and on the web, there are plenty of platforms. This is why many of them don't really compete for the same audience.
And Twitter's leader Elon Musk, knows that very well.
The serial entrepreneur is the richest man on Earth, and is an avid social media user. And his his controversial acquisition of Twitter makes him one of the most vocal people on the internet, in terms of speaking his mind.
And when it comes to that, Musk is that kind of person who could do outrageous things, including endorsing an antisemitic post with his replies.
That behavior has also made brands uncomfortable, as they don’t want their advertisements anywhere near hate speech.
Speaking to Andrew Ross Sorkin, Elon Musk blatantly scoffed at advertisers leaving the X, formerly known as Twitter, because of antisemitic posts he amplified there.
"Go fuck yourself. Is that clear? I hope it is."
" [...] I’m saying what I care about is the reality of goodness, not the perception of it. And what I see all over the place is people who care about looking good while doing evil, fuck them. Okay?"
Musk then singled out Disney, which has pulled its advertising from X.
"Hey, Bob, if you’re in the audience!" Musk said, referring to Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company.
As a businessman, Musk doesn't really care if people hate him.
Given by his influence, popularity, and wealth, and how he managed to amassed such huge importance through his many companies, many people would think that Musk wants to be loved.
If X wants to become a financial platform where people are going to put their money, and that if SpaceX wants governments to continue giving it money to build rockets and put satellites into space, and if Tesla wants to keep selling cars, Musk doesn't need people to love him..
In fact, he doesn't even care if people trust him or not.
Many would probably think that Musk wants people to idolize him, follow his footsteps, do whatever he says, and be his fans and followers.
But Musk doesn't care about that.
As long as his companies can set track records, that is all that matters.
Read: Elon Musk Criticized For His Biased Stance: Caught Between The Hamas-Israel War
Musk then continued by threatening advertisers.
"I have no problem being hated. Hate away."
In his perplexing performance admitted that the departure of major advertisers like Apple, Disney, and Warner Bros. is "going to kill the company."
But if X should go bankrupt, there are judges who will decide who is right and who is wrong.
And those that will be the judges are the people, which include the users of X themselves.
If X remains relevant in the digital sphere, but go bankrupt, they will blame advertisers for it. And if that happens, it won't look good for those companies' business.
It's worth noting though, that Musk later offered an apology for his actions, saying that he "handed a loaded gun to those who hate me," and that he was "quite sorry."
This was also addressed by X CEO Linda Yaccarino in a post on X.
Today @elonmusk gave a wide ranging and candid interview at @dealbook 2023. He also offered an apology, an explanation and an explicit point of view about our position. X is enabling an information independence that's uncomfortable for some people. We're a platform that allows… https://t.co/PSmSKRkJSq
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) November 30, 2023