Elon Musk addresses his harsh remarks at Cannes Lions Festival; Here's what he said
Elon Musk has clarified his previous comments at the Cannes Lions advertising festival, addressing concerns about his remarks aimed at advertisers leaving his X social media platform. Musk explained that his comment was meant as a general point on free speech rather than a direct attack on advertisers.
Clarifying the Controversial Statement
In late 2023, Musk's statement telling advertisers threatening to pull ads to «go f--- yourself» caused a stir. At the festival, he sought to downplay the harshness of his remark, stating, “It wasn’t to advertisers as a whole. It was with respect to freedom of speech, I think it is important to have a global free speech platform, where people from a wider range of opinions can voice their views.”
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X CEO Linda Yaccarino added that Musk had offered an apology and an explicit point of view about the platform's position, emphasizing that X is enabling information independence, which can be uncomfortable for some people.
Progress on Brand Safety
Musk also addressed concerns about brand safety on X, highlighting that the company has made progress in creating a safer environment for brands. He acknowledged that advertisers have the right to appear next to content compatible with their brands, but emphasized that insisting on complete content censorship is unacceptable.
“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
