If somebody's going to try to blackmail me with advertising. Blackmail with money. Go fuck yourself. - But go yourself. - Is that clear? Yeah, it's pretty clear. You said it twice now. [00:00:17] That was, of course, ex CEO Elon Musk giving us a very strong message in how he feels about advertisers who have been pulling out of his platform because of allegations that he is anti Semitic. Now, if you're wondering what sparked that and what led to his [00:00:35] apology tour in Israel, it was this. It started with a comment on ex. I'm going to read it to you. Jewish communities have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them. [00:00:52] I'm deeply disinterested in giving the tiniest crap about how Western Jewish populations are coming to the disgusting realization that those hordes of minorities that support flooding their country don't exactly like them too much. You want, truth said to your face. There it is. [00:01:07] And Musk responded to that by saying, you have said the actual truth and followed that up with the ADL unjustly attacks the majority of the West, despite the majority of the West supporting the Jewish people and Israel. This is because they cannot, by their own tenants, criticize the minority groups [00:01:26] who are their primary threat. It is not right and needs to stop. The other thing that I'll mention is, you know, Musk announced and and filed a lawsuit against media matters for America after media matters for America published a report claiming that the ads of various corporations are showing [00:01:46] up on posts of anti-Semitic material. Musk obviously disagrees with that, says that the methodology that media matters used is the reason why they got the kind of result that they did. [00:02:02] So they're going to hash that out in court. But the allegations of anti-Semitism is what's led to certain companies basically pulling their ads from X, and he's super salty about it. It's pretty clear in the video that you saw, and we're going to watch a little more in just a moment. But, Jake, I'm curious what you think, because even me, like, I see that there's [00:02:21] a huge part of me that thinks like, yeah, yeah, you know, because the advertisers, they're super scared. They're terrified of their precious brands. Right. And so because of that model being baked into media and yes, in this case, social [00:02:36] media platforms, it ends up watering down news, analysis, comments that people want to make about various things happening both domestically and internationally. So I understand the frustration toward people who are tired of that. [00:02:53] Right. But at the same time, you're going to destroy this business. And I think he knows that, and I almost feel like he wants that. And I'll get to that in a moment. Yeah, I don't think he wants it, but I think that now I'm beginning to understand when people say, like he's on the spectrum somewhere, he's he's super awkward. [00:03:09] That's going to come into effect here. But first, let me break it down a little bit, actually, Andrew Ross Sorkin's face, though, when he said it was really interesting because he looked pained, like he pictured billions of dollars floating away into the vapor as as Elon Musk was saying that. [00:03:26] And and I think that he was thinking like, oof, you sure, bro? You want to say this? Yeah. - Look at his face. - It's amazing. Right? So because he's right, it's going to vaporize billions. So Twitter was bought by Elon Musk for $44 billion. [00:03:42] It's spiraling down to near zero now, which Musk is going to talk about the real possibility that it will go bankrupt. It was never worth $44 billion to begin with. So he kind of started at a really bad place. And then things kind of devolved from there. Because it turns out that you do need employees to ensure that this platform [00:04:01] is running smoothly and effectively. And he literally made the user experience worse, way worse. And the only way that it would be marginally better is if you pay for the X subscription. You'll get the verified mark and it allegedly functions a little better. [00:04:18] But even people who have the check mark are saying no. Lots of glitches, lots of problems. Tons. Yeah. Okay. So was what he said anti-Semitic? Largely, yes. So he's talking about the great replacement theory. And remember, the Nazis in Charlottesville chanted the Jews will not replace us. [00:04:35] And then Tucker Carlson would oftentimes said in his monologues on Fox News, immigrants will not replace us. So this whole great replacement theory has been going around for some time. It was so bad, so toxic, that that's why Elon Musk went to Israel. [00:04:55] I mean, he didn't randomly go to Israel. Was it an apology tour? Of course it was, right. But he's he views himself as a tough guy and he's one of the richest men in the world. And so he feels like he doesn't have to compromise on anything. So the fact that he's being described as an apology tour [00:05:10] has gotten really under his skin. He compromises all the time, including compromises in regard to his alleged free speech absolutism. Because, look, while he didn't actually carry it out, he threatened to. [00:05:26] Ban any posts on X that use the word decolonialization. Decolonialization or the phrase from the river to the sea. So he's threatened censorship. He didn't actually carry it out, though. And then, in regard to other countries that are much more censorious [00:05:44] than the United States is, he was willing to abide by their rules and censor content on the platform on their behalf. Right. Because it's not about censorship, it's about his ego. So when he's censoring on behalf of other people to make money, he doesn't mind. But if opinions he agrees with right are being censored, right, [00:06:02] then he catches feelings and be like, you're not going to censor me. I mean, people overall think so. As he said after advertisers, the CEO, the current CEO of Twitter, had to be like, oh my God, what have you done? Because in that moment, the company is pretty much gone because advertisers [00:06:21] are the most sensitive people on earth. They're also the most conservative, not politically, but by nature. So the minute someone says something like that, they're like, that's it. And a lot of the advertising deals get done by these guys greasing each other. Okay. Just I'm keeping it real. [00:06:37] I've been in the industry for all this time. So but there was a to Anna's point when he said that it was a bit cathartic. Yes, totally. Because the advertisers control the content so much in media and we, since we won't be controlled, [00:06:54] have had such a difficult time. Right. Just being able to even with giant numbers, giant numbers of viewers barely maintaining sustainability because advertisers punish anything that's interesting. You know, it's interesting because, I mean, we obviously do political content [00:07:12] that runs into the same problem that conservative content creators run into, which is your videos end up getting demonetized, so you make no money off of it. The difference between us and conservatives, though, is rather than spending endless hours on air whining about it, you know, we find other ways [00:07:30] to raise revenue so we can continue covering those stories that we find to be incredibly important. But I'm not going to lie and say I enjoy that. That's incredibly frustrating, time consuming. I can't stand it. And I think that that frustration that I feel in regard to having to do [00:07:46] that all the time is why it was cathartic to see Elon Musk say that to advertisers. But now let's get to what this means for X, because in the rest of the interview, he seems to accept the fact that this is incredibly irresponsible and destructive. [00:08:02] If you're trying to run a business, let's watch. What this advertising boycott is, is going to do. - It's going to kill a company. - And you think that the but. And the whole world will know that those advertisers killed the company, [00:08:18] and we will document it in great detail. But there are those advertisers I imagine are going to say they're going to say, we didn't kill the company. Oh, yeah, they're going to say, tell it to. - Tell it to Earth. - But they're going to say that. They're going to say, Elon, that you killed the company because you said these things and they were inappropriate things and that they [00:08:37] didn't feel comfortable on the platform. Right. - That's that's what they're. - Going to say. And let's see how Earth responds to that. So okay. Then this goes back to we'll. Both make our cases right and we'll see what the outcome is. Listen I don't know how Earth is going to respond to it. [00:08:54] I can only say what I would want to respond with. And it's based. Yeah. Based. Been waiting for this day forever. Love it. Elon Musk I think I might be your biggest fan. Why? Because he's going to wipe out Twitter. Yeah. That's okay. I wanted to be clear about that. Yeah. [00:09:10] Because yeah. Look, this is why I said now I get it. He might be on the spectrum somewhere. Tell it to Earth. What are you talking about, brother? Like Earth is not going to be like, oh, who was right? Elon or all of the advertisers in the world. Yeah, that's not even a thing. They don't understand that. [00:09:28] Here's what. And if you're going to make that case, make it clearer. Like we are like, here's another thing I get frustrated with advertisers. Do you know that they ban both racism and anti racism at the same degree? So they're like, oh, if you're talking about racial issues or injustice, [00:09:44] we don't want to be involved in that conversation at all. So, you know, the racists will get demonetized and so will the people fighting back against it. Now that's so frustrating. Now having said that, am I going to be like, okay, then I'm not going to take any advertiser money and I'm going to tell Earth. [00:10:02] Well, actually, ironically, you can't tell Earth because then you won't be on the air anymore, right? And so like in his mind, you know, because of advertisers taking a stand and not wanting to have their ads featured on X, it's going to destroy the company, [00:10:18] X will cease to exist. And there will be what, like a massive uprising and people will be really upset at the advertisers. And then, I mean, and then what? And then what? And I don't think that's even going to happen. I think what's very likely going to happen in today's media cycle, where everyone has an insanely short attention span, is they're going to regroup [00:10:36] and they're going to find another platform to to do what they're doing. Right. Like it's but look, let's wait and see what Earth does. I'm very curious. I'm very curious. But will this actually destroy the company? I think it's worth getting into that as well. Well, it turns out that X could lose as much as $75 million in advertising revenue [00:10:55] by the end of the year, as dozens of major brands pause their marketing campaigns. The documents list more than 200 AD units of companies from the likes of Airbnb, Amazon, Coca-Cola and Microsoft, many of which have halted or are considering [00:11:11] pausing their ads on the social network. Now, the documents list how much ad revenue X employees fear the company could lose through the end of the year if advertisers do not return in the last three months of 2021. The last year, the company reported fourth quarter earnings before Musk [00:11:28] took over, the company recorded $1.57 billion in revenue, of which nearly 90% came from advertising. Using advertisers or US advertising on the platform is down nearly 60% this year. So clearly it's a bit of a disaster, to say the least. [00:11:45] And then, Jake, before you jump in, I have to go to one other fantastic moment in this interview. - Let's take a look. - So I will certainly not pander. And, Jonathan, the only reason I'm here is because you are a friend. [00:12:00] - Like, what was my speaking fee? - You're not making any. First of all, I'm Andrew, but. Yeah, sorry. It's okay. Second of all, we've known each other for a very long time. Sorkin. Yes. And listen, you know. [00:12:22] What I'm trying to illustrate is that sometimes I say the wrong thing. Sometimes he says the wrong thing. I love that moment. I thought it was fun. He's a very good friend. They're very good friends. Yeah. He is. So he's such a riddle, man. Because Starlink is an amazing company. [00:12:39] Tesla is a wonder in some ways and is I don't know. I don't know if it's partly a mirage, partly real with Tesla, but Starlink is certainly a great company, and he's certainly done amazing work at other companies. Yet he doesn't create these things, but he has marketed them well. [00:12:54] He has run some of them incredibly well to the point of making, obviously, in one of the top two richest people in the world. And then you see, he overpaid by at least $20 for Twitter and then drove it into the ground. And if you're going to tell the advertisers to to f off, you have [00:13:11] to have a plan already in place where you're going to replace that revenue. I mean, this is just fundamental business. No, I. Think I just realized something, Jake. Yeah. - Is surviving in media harder than science. - But it actually is. [00:13:26] No, it's really hard. It is. It is really hard. I'm not I'm never going to say that. Like, surviving in media is harder than, you know, building a successful like Starlink. You know, that's. - No, no, no, it. - Definitely is. More is harder because look. [00:13:42] You're good at science. And by the way, it's not Elon Musk. He hires scientists. - Yes, yes, yes. - And that's what they're great at. And they just, you know, and they do what they're good at. And their brains are structured that way. And that's a straightforward business, right. - Media is not a straightforward business. - It's not. No. You have to. [00:13:57] Have you have to navigate people's feelings and relationships. - ET cetera. - No I don't care about that. No no. No. But like for advertisers they're a super sensitive lot. Yeah that's right diversifying it. Because if you look at the media landscape, it is now constantly changing [00:14:14] because of digital media, because of so many other options that people have. Right. So the competition is probably more fierce than it's ever been. You're because of the nature of internet content, you're constantly chasing algorithms, which of course it's super opaque and you kind of have [00:14:31] to figure things out for yourself. No, it is difficult. I'm not going to purport that it's easy. A reporter once called me and said, your competition is a graveyard because almost every company in our industry has gone under. And so, you know, you could laugh at Elon Musk and say, oh my God, I can't believe [00:14:47] how much he's blowing this, but especially if he's a dude on the spectrum. Running a media company is a very, very difficult thing to do. And navigating not only personal relationships with advertisers, etcetera, but being public and stating your opinions publicly and then getting [00:15:02] the reaction back and being able to see where the audience is going and and head in the right direction. Those are all very difficult tasks, and it doesn't look like it matches his skill set. So that $44 million is largely gone now. [00:15:17] Hey, thanks for watching the video. We really appreciate it guys, and we appreciate it if you become members because that allows us to be independent, honest, progressive, all the things that you don't get from corporate media and all of that is because of you guys. Hit the join button below and become one of us. Become a young Turk.