LGBTQ Reporter Responds to Posts That Attempt To Blame Her For Ad Uproar
Media Matters released a report about how Elon Musk’s X, the social media website that was formerly known as Twitter, has been placing major companies’ ads on white nationalist hashtags. This followed the revelation that Musk agreed with a white supremacist conspiracy theory on the website earlier last week. Musk is known to have anti-trans sentiments and has a trans child, Vivian Jenna Wilson, who will no longer speak with him or acknowledge him as a parent after legally changing her name and gender in Santa Monica Court in April.
The ads were for companies such as Apple, Bravo (parent company NBCUniversal), IBM, Oracle, and Xfinity, (parent company Comcast.) To date, Apple, Comcast / NBCUniversal, Disney, EU Commission, IBM, Lionsgate, Paramount, and Warner Brothers have all paused ads on the site. Musk has threatened to file a “thermonuclear” lawsuit against Media Matters as soon as possible.
On Saturday, November 18 Chaya Raichik, who created the social media account “Libs of TikTok” and a person with well-known anti-LGBTQ views, began an online attack on a reporter at Media Matters, Ari Drennan, a transwoman. Drennan did not head up the investigation that Raichik referenced. Raichik mocked a post on X by Drennan about Libs of TikTok posts that led to harassment and threats against a North Carolina high school.
Raichik deadnamed Drennan and in two tweets called her mentally ill and insisted that Drennan was a man, posting an older photo of Drennan. Additionally, she said Drennan “helped push advertisers to leave X to try to destroy Elon Musk.” Elon Musk responded to the thread and said, “Wow.”
Drennan responded to Raichik’s post pointing out that Raichik focused her accusations on a Media Matters reporter who did not author the investigation and said in a tweet thread, “Crediting me for advertisers leaving this place erases the tireless work of my incredible colleagues, who Chaya has not fixated on in the same way but who are doing amazing reporting that’s helped drive this news cycle. If you’re not following Eric Hananoki you’re missing out.”
Drennan added, “Thank you Chaya Raichik and Elon Musk for sending so many new followers my way today! If you don’t like your gender you can change it, and I appreciate your help sharing this important message with the thousands of people still using X (formerly Twitter).”
