The owner of X, formally known as Twitter, Elon Musk has clarified a controversial comment he made telling advertisers to “go fuck themselves” in a strategic move to attract advertisers back to the platform.

Speaking at the 2024 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Musk emphasised that the comment was not addressed at all advertisers, but those demanding “censorship”.

Subscribe to Mobile Marketing Magazine

Click here to get the latest marketing news free in your inbox every Thursday

During an onstage discussion, Musk told WPP’s CEO, Mark Read: “First of all, it wasn’t to advertisers as a whole. It was with respect to freedom of speech.

“It is important to have a global free speech platform where people with a wide range of opinions can voice their views. In some cases, there were advertisers who were insisting on censorship.”

The original comment, made at the DealBook Summit in New York, was directed at advertisers boycotting X over concerns about antisemitism and other hate speech on the platform.

As a result, the comment faced significant backlash from industry experts resulting in a strained relationship with many advertisers.

Musk added: “Of course, advertisers have a right to appear next to content that they find compatible with their brands. That’s totally fine.” What is not cool is insisting that there can be no content they disagree with on the platform.”

“I believe in sort of freedom of choice,” he stated.