Advertisers are beginning to demand details from new Twitter CEO Elon Musk on the direction of the platform and how it will work for advertisers moving forward.
According to Reuters, a media buyer at a major ad agency said it and its major clients would be meeting with Musk this week to ask how he plans to clamp down on misinformation on the platform. The source declined to be named “for fear of reprisal.”
The buyer also wanted to know why Musk shared a tweet over the weekend that spread a conspiracy theory about the attack US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband Paul.
Other topics on the agenda include Musk’s plan to raise the cost of the Twitter Blue subscription service, who will be the point of contact for advertisers following a string of executive departures, and the plan to serve “half as many ads.” Advertising currently makes up more than 90 per cent of Twitter’s revenue.
The Financial Times reported that L’Oreal had suspended its advertising on Twitter. However, following publication, the company told Reuters that it had not “made any decision to suspend advertising.”
Another source told Reuters that IPG, which represents the likes of Coca-Cola and American Express, had advised clients to pause Twitter ads for the next week.
On Thursday morning, Musk tweeted a poll asking whether advertisers should support freedom of speech or “political correctness.”
“Those type of provocations are not helping to calm the waters,” the media buyer told Reuters.
Twitter has not responded to requests for comment from Reuters or the FT.
