Federal Trade Commission Investigates Media Matters, Watchdog Sued by Musk

The Washington Post

14:21 JST, May 24, 2025

Media Matters, a left-leaning watchdog group that publishes reports on conservative media and social media platforms such as Elon Musk’s X, said it received a civil investigative demand letter from the Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday.

The letter demanded materials related to a lawsuit filed by Musk, communications with other media and advertising groups dating back to 2019, and information about its technology, methods and policies, among an extensive range of materials, according to a person familiar with the letter’s contents, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss legal matters. The FTC sends letters of demand as part of its investigations into organizations that it believes could have breached federal regulations.

Media Matters was sued by Musk, a billionaire and close ally of President Donald Trump, after it published a report in November 2023 that showed mainstream advertisements appearing beside pro-Nazi content on his site X. Companies such as Apple and Disney suspended their advertising on X after the Media Matters report was published. Musk claimed the report was defamatory and deceptive, and alleged that Media Matters had manipulated the algorithm to show content and advertising placement that a regular user of X would not see.

The FTC demand includes all materials produced through discovery as part of the Musk lawsuit, according to the person familiar with the contents of the letter. The lawsuit is ongoing, and Musk and Media Matters have each sued each other in other jurisdictions since.

Media Matters was also investigated by the attorneys general of Texas, Ken Paxton, and Missouri, Andrew Bailey, both Republicans, over its report on X, but the organization was granted injunctions in its favor in both cases. Each attorney general had alleged that the nonprofit could have engaged in fraudulent business practices targeting X.

In a statement, Media Matters President Angelo Carusone said that the Trump administration had “been defined by naming right-wing media figures to key posts and abusing the power of the federal government to bully political opponents and silence critics.”

“It’s clear that’s exactly what’s happening here,” he said, adding: “These threats won’t work; we remain steadfast to our mission.”

The FTC declined to comment.

Trump in March dismissed the two remaining Democrats on the FTC, which critics said called the commission’s independence into question. It is designed to be made up of five commissioners who serve seven-year terms, with no more than three from one political party allowed. However, it currently has only three, all Republicans, two appointed last year by President Joe Biden and one by Trump this year.

Media Matters was founded more than two decades ago as an advocacy group to monitor conservative media such as Fox News and report false or misleading claims made by right-wing outlets. It has worked to get advertisers to boycott Fox News.