Donald Trump is set to return to the White House in January. Ahead of his return, the former president announced that Elon Musk would lead the new "Department of Government Efficiency" in his second administration. With Musk's close ties to Trump, advertisers are expected to flock back to X to gain access to the administration.
The Financial Times recently spoke with media executives who revealed that some brands are preparing to advertise on X again, particularly due to Musk's connections with the incoming administration.
Lou Paskalis, CEO of the marketing consultancy AJL Advisory and a former media executive at Bank of America, explained that marketers plan to reallocate spending dollars on X as a form of "political leverage." He noted that some companies are seeking government contracts and trying to get in the "good graces of Elon."
"It could be seen as an official channel for White House communications," another advertising agency chief told FT, adding that Trump's victory has shifted significant power and legitimacy into Musk's hands.
However, only some are optimistic. One media director described X as a "mess," questioning, "Which brand will take the risk?"
Musk's $44 billion acquisition of X initially triggered chaos in ad monetization. Dark money-funded fact-checkers allegedly created false reports to discourage companies from advertising on the platform, attempting to starve it of ad revenue.
The problem for Soros-funded Media Matters and other far-left organizations was that Elon Musk, the world's richest man, could support X operations for a long time. Musk famously told brands that pulled their ads to "go f**k yourself" at the DealBook Conference and has since announced plans to sue the so-called advertising censorship cartel.
Richard Exon, founder of the ad agency Joint, said, "Trump's victory may well mean brands give X a second chance in 2025," though he cautioned that they "will be wise to proceed with extreme caution."
Meanwhile, as X cements its role as a central hub for distributing news to Americans, legacy media outlets like CNN and MSNBC are imploding.