Twitter CEO Elon Musk called out Apple CEO Tim Cook for Apple’s alleged “censorship” of particular apps and websites on the App Store in several tweets Monday.
Musk accused Apple and Cook of opposing free speech over reports of globally censoring certain search terms on their products. The company also largely halted its advertising on the social media platform following Musk’s takeover in late October.
“Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Do they hate free speech in America?” Musk said. “What is going on here, @tim_cook?”
What’s going on here @tim_cook?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 28, 2022
In response, a content creation website, LBRY, called the company out for allegedly demanding the apps filter certain words in order to be allowed on Apple’s app store. The website accused the tech company of barring over twenty search terms related to COVID, particularly in connection to vaccines or the origins of the virus.
“Who else has Apple censored,” Musk asked in a quote tweet.
Who else has Apple censored? https://t.co/lZculFIkAX
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 28, 2022
He then agreed that Apple can be accurately compared to a parody of Apple’s first commercial inspired by George Orwell’s “1984.” Epic Games, the company behind the video game “Fortnite,” created its own version of the commercial in response to the company removing the game from the App Store, Business Insider reported. Epic Games filed a lawsuit against Apple over the removal, but lost their legal battle in 2020.
Accurate https://t.co/1PRfh67nWX
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 28, 2022
Musk alleged that Apple “threatened to withhold” Twitter from the App Store without explanation and posted a poll asking users whether the company should “publish” all of its “censorship actions.” The poll is set to expire Tuesday.
Apple should publish all censorship actions it has taken that affect its customers
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 28, 2022
Apple has also threatened to withhold Twitter from its App Store, but won’t tell us why
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 28, 2022
He further accused Apple of being politically “biased” in response to a report that 97% of its donations have favored the Democratic Party.
Wow, they don’t sound biased at all!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 28, 2022
The tech billionaire responded to a Watcher Guru report alleging that Apple places a “secret 30% tax” on all advertisements purchased on the App Store. The company quietly imposed a direct tax on advertising on iOS apps, directly rewarding 30% on “sales of ‘boosts’ for posts in a social media app,” The Verge reported. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans Demand Answers On Apple’s Censorship Policies In China)
The tension between Musk and Apple has intensified in the past year. Phil Schiller, a senior executive at Apple in charge of the App Store, recently deleted his Twitter account after Musk’s takeover. Yoel Roth, the former head of trust and safety at Twitter, said in a Nov. 18 New York Times op-ed the platform is at risk of being removed from the Apple and Google app stores after sparring over allowing racial and adult content.
Musk responded that he can create an “alternative phone” if Twitter is barred from Google and Apple.
Apple did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller’s request for comment.