US antisemitism watchdog the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has extended an olive branch to X/Twitter boss Elon Musk, after weeks of conflict.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the organisation clarified its stance on X and denied allegations it orchestrated a boycott of the platform, causing the company to lose billions of dollars of advertising revenue.
“We ourselves were advertising on the platform until the anti-ADL attacks began a few weeks ago,” the watchdog said in its statement.
“We now are preparing to do so again to bring our important message on fighting hate to X and its users.”
The ADL also stated its intent to combat the ongoing issue of antisemitism and extremism on X as well as other social media platforms: “In the spirit of collaboration, we are hopeful that we can continue to engage with X on this important matter.”
Both the ADL and the Center for Countering Digital Hate, another non-profit watchdog, have reported an increase in hate speech on X since Musk's acquisition of the platform last October.
The ADL has previously reported “both an increase in antisemitic content on the platform and a decrease in the moderation of antisemitic posts", following the takeover.
Musk criticised these findings, claiming in a tweet last month that the ADL had been falsely accusing him and X of antisemitism.
In August, two brands withdrew advertising from X after their ads appeared beside an account promoting neo-Nazi ideology, after which X suspended the account.
“A better, healthier, and safer X would be a win for the world,” the ADL said.
“We’ve said that publicly and repeatedly, and we hope that company leadership shares that goal as well.
"As we do with all platforms, we will credit X as it moves in that direction, and we also will call it out when it has not.”
In response, Musk tweeted: “Thank you for clarifying that you support advertising on X”.
Last week, Musk participated in a livestream discussion hosted by conservative pundit Ben Shapiro which platformed a variety of Jewish speakers in an effort to delegitimise claims of antisemitism on X.
