Elon Musk’s Lawsuits And A Federal Probe Threaten To Bring Down Media Matters
Left-wing activist group Media Matters is facing a full-blown financial crisis, driven by mounting legal bills, plummeting donations, and lawsuits from Elon Musk and investigations spearheaded by the Trump administration.
The organization reportedly owes around $15 million, with insiders now admitting it may be forced to shut down entirely if the situation worsens, according to The New York Times. While Media Matters still claims it has “no plans to close,” the bleeding is undeniable.
A major catalyst for the collapse was a 2023 hit piece targeting Musk’s X platform, falsely claiming the site was placing ads from companies like Apple and IBM next to Nazi content. The story led to a temporary advertiser boycott and sparked Musk’s legal retaliation.
Musk called the Media Matters report “a malicious lie,” and he’s kept up the legal pressure—refusing to settle and taking his lawsuits international, with new filings in Singapore and Ireland. “Media Matters misrepresented the real user experience on X in a blatant attempt to mislead advertisers and suppress speech,” Musk said in a statement.
But the Musk suit isn’t the group’s only problem. The Federal Trade Commission, now run by Trump appointee Andrew Ferguson, opened a probe earlier this year into whether Media Matters illegally coordinated advertiser boycotts—potentially violating federal antitrust laws.
State attorneys general have joined the fight. Texas AG Ken Paxton launched an investigation into Media Matters’ conduct, and Missouri’s AG followed suit. Even though one of the probes was blocked by a court and Missouri ultimately dropped its inquiry, the legal costs were staggering—reportedly nearing $2 million.
Media Matters’ president, Angelo Carusone, has framed the situation as a “revenge campaign” against the group, but that narrative is losing steam as internal turmoil mounts. According to the Times, Media Matters is laying off staff, begging for donor cash, and quietly considering shuttering the organization altogether.
Despite receiving millions from Democrat mega-donors like George Soros, Bain Capital’s Joshua Bekenstein, and Deborah Simon, daughter of mall billionaire Melvin Simon, Media Matters is burning through money. In 2022, it raised $16.5 million, yet still appears unable to weather the storm. Carusone himself took home over $400,000 in salary that year.
Meanwhile, conservative legal momentum continues. Earlier this year, CBS News paid a $16 million settlement to President Trump over a deceptively edited “60 Minutes” segment involving then-VP Kamala Harris. Columbia University coughed up a $200 million settlement over its failure to control anti-Israel riots on campus.
Media Matters, which claims to fight “right-wing misinformation,” has long been accused of functioning as a Democrat propaganda arm. Even the left-leaning New York Times conceded that its real mission is “to help Democrats and undermine Republicans.”
The group has frequently targeted conservative media outlets like The Daily Wire, attempting to deplatform hosts like Matt Walsh. “I will never surrender even a single inch of ground to a pitchfork mob full of degenerate idiots,” Walsh said in response.
As of now, the future of Media Matters looks grim. Its top donors are reportedly losing interest, and even some Democrats are said to be distancing themselves. Musk, meanwhile, shows no signs of letting up, and the Trump administration’s DOJ and FTC appear fully engaged in what could become a landmark takedown of a once-powerful left-wing attack machine.