(Bloomberg) — Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman defended Elon Musk after major advertisers pulled ads from social media site X over anti-Semitic comments.
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Musk received backlash after approving a post in which he said Jews had a “polemical hatred” for white people. “You told the actual truth,” billionaire Malik X posted on Wednesday.
Read more: Musk’s commentary and rampant anti-Semitism on X Fuel Outrage
That drew criticism from the White House and shareholders of Tesla, Musk’s only publicly traded company, with some investors saying he should be suspended from his position as head of the electric car maker. Advertisers from Apple to Walt Disney have also suspended or halted spending on the X.
Ackman, CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, is worth about $2.2 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
The hedge fund manager said in October that he was interested in pursuing a deal with Company X as part of a new investment vehicle targeting private companies seeking to raise $1.5 billion or more and possibly go public, according to the Wall Street Journal. .
Ackman also said that he has already provided some financial support for the social media platform through a $10 million investment through his company’s foundation.
A frequent contributor on social media, he has been vocal in calling for his alma mater Harvard to take steps to address anti-Semitism.
Read more: Ackman urges suspension of classes at Harvard to address anti-Semitism
(Adds details about Akman’s relationships with X starting in fifth paragraph.)
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