Elon Musk, the high-profile CEO of SpaceX, has intensified his dispute with Disney CEO Bob Iger, urging for his immediate dismissal over allegations that Disney advertisements appeared on social platforms reportedly linked to child exploitation. This comes in the wake of Musk’s recent confrontational comments towards Iger, following Disney’s decision to withdraw advertising from Musk’s social media platform X, amidst claims of antisemitic content association.
Musk’s latest criticism was sparked by a lawsuit filed in New Mexico, alleging that platforms owned by Mark Zuckerberg, specifically Facebook and Instagram, were lax in moderating harmful content, including child exploitation. Musk accused Iger of being complicit in these issues through advertising decisions. “Walt Disney would be appalled by Bob’s actions with his company,” Musk tweeted, indicating his disapproval of Disney’s advertising strategies.
Musk’s comments also referred to a discussion started by Colin Rugg, co-owner of Trending Politics, questioning whether Disney would cease advertising with Facebook and Instagram’s parent company, Meta. Disney has yet to comment on these allegations.
This controversy follows a string of advertisers, including Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. Discovery, withdrawing their ads from Musk’s X platform. The withdrawal was a response to a report by Media Matters, a liberal watchdog group, alleging that their advertisements were displayed alongside anti-Semitic content.
In response, Musk vowed to launch a substantial lawsuit against Media Matters. He has also been the subject of criticism for engaging with controversial theories on social media, though he has attempted to clarify and apologize for these remarks. During a recent New York Times DealBook Summit interview, Musk vehemently denied accusations of antisemitism and expressed his disdain for advertisers who left his platform, directing a blunt message to Iger.
Musk emphasized that consumer decisions should be based on product quality, citing Tesla’s electric cars and SpaceX rockets as examples. “I will not pander to these criticisms,” he stated. Iger has not publicly responded to Musk’s recent remarks.
In addition to calling for Iger’s removal, Musk also shared a meme featuring comedic actors Laurel and Hardy, symbolically ridiculing Iger. He further criticized Disney’s current management in an interview with automotive engineer Sandy Munro, suggesting that company founder Walt Disney would be deeply disappointed with the company’s current direction.