X sues Media Matters over antisemitic outrage

X has filed a lawsuit implicating Media watchdog Media Matters for content manipulation. According to the lawsuit, the media watchdog manipulated the ‘scroll and refresh’ process on the X platform to the point where chosen accounts could track the accounts of major brands like IBM whenever they landed on extremist posts. 

X has experienced a widespread exodus of advertisers since the report produced by the media company. The fiasco adds to the already falling revenue the company has been experiencing since its purchase by Elon Musk in October 2022. In the US alone, ad revenue has declined by 55% yearly. X reiterates its alignment with the fight against discrimination.

On the other hand, Media Matters’ president, in an interview with Reuters, insinuated that the guile his company now faces from X is a direct result of the fact that the findings in the report serve to discount X’s claim to have implemented safety protections to prevent ads from appearing next to harmful content. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton promised to open an investigation into the matter. 

Why does it matter?

The showdown between the two entities, Media Matters and the X platform, is a quintessential example of the growing importance of data and its use as evidence in claims, particularly claims made by media houses. It also holds VLOPs (very large online platforms) to account for claims they make concerning public safety.