Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, faces a mounting backlash after he called an antisemitic post on the social platform this week “the actual truth,” dismaying investors and prompting some companies to halt advertising on the platform.

Multiple advertisers — including Comcast, IBM, the European Commission and the movie studio Lionsgate — said they are pulling spending on X (formerly known as Twitter), citing reports of rising hate speech, including a report that some ads are appearing next to Nazi-related content.

A Lionsgate spokesperson told CBS News in a statement Friday that the company “has suspended advertising on X because of Elon Musk’s recent antisemitic tweets.”

A spokesperson for Paramount Global, the parent company of CBS News, also confirmed it has suspended advertising on X.

The White House also issued a statement, calling Musk’s comment “unacceptable.”

“We condemn this abhorrent promotion of antisemitic and racist hate in the strongest terms, which runs against our core values as Americans,” a White House spokesman said on Friday.

The blowback comes as X has already suffered a loss of advertisers, with some wary about their brands appearing on the platform amid reports of rising hate speech. Musk hired former NBC executive Linda Yaccarino to convince big brands to return to the social media service, a job that now appears to face additional headwinds in the aftermath of Musk’s comment.

Advertising on X fell 60% in September and revenue has sunk, Bloomberg News reporter Aisha Counts recently told CBS News. In July, Musk said the company’s ad revenue had plunged 50%, while also noting its heavy debt load.

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https://www.cbsnews.com/news/elon-musk-actual-truth-antisemitic-post-backlash-advertisers/