Media Matters for America filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to stop an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), claiming the probe is politically motivated and aimed at silencing the group's reporting about Elon Musk's social media platform, X.
According to Reuters, the liberal media watchdog argued that the FTC's demands for internal communications and documents about its work with other watchdogs and advertisers are a direct response to Media Matters' criticism of Musk and the platform he owns.
Media Matters said the probe has already had a chilling effect on its reporting.
"The court should put an end to the latest effort by the Trump Administration and Elon Musk's government allies to punish, intimidate, and harass Media Matters for publishing reporting they do not like," the lawsuit stated.
The FTC launched an investigation after a 2023 report from Media Matters found that ads from big-name brands like IBM and Apple were showing up next to extremist content on X—some of it even praising Adolf Hitler and promoting Nazi views.
After the report came out, several companies quickly pulled their ads from the platform.
🚨BREAKING: The FTC has launched an investigation into Media Matters, the Democrat-aligned propaganda arm, over whether it colluded with advertisers to cut off revenue to conservative or pro-free speech entities.
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) May 22, 2025
Good! Media Matters has every right to complain about what I say —… pic.twitter.com/2k5APMHP8m
FTC Faces Lawsuit Over Alleged Bias in X Boycott Case
X fired back by suing Media Matters, claiming the group purposely shared misleading info to drive advertisers away, Engadget said. Media Matters denied that, saying they were simply exposing a real problem.
They later filed their own lawsuit against X, accusing the company of trying to silence critics through intimidation.
The FTC has requested documents from Media Matters to determine whether it worked with advertisers to organize a boycott of X.
Media Matters insists it has not coordinated any such action and calls the inquiry an attempt to punish the group for its reporting.
In its complaint, Media Matters said: "The Federal Trade Commission seeks to punish Media Matters for its journalism and speech in exposing matters of public concern—including how X.com has enabled and profited from extremist content."
The lawsuit also points to concerns about the FTC's current leadership. With only Republican commissioners left after President Trump removed two Democrats from the agency, Media Matters argues the probe is politically biased.
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