Tensions rise as WFA grapples with Musk’s lawsuit, splitting members

The World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) is in turmoil, and Elon Musk is at the center of it.

The upheaval began in August when the billionaire dragged his grievances into a U.S. courtroom, alleging that WFA members were conspiring to withhold ad dollars from X. Predictably, the trade body dismissed those allegations and is preparing to contest them in court. Yet, this tug-of-war has left the WFA fractured, as three ad executives familiar with the discussions candidly revealed — on the condition of anonymity, of course.

Some members are eager to settle so the lawsuit disappears and distance themselves from Musk, apprehensive about how his accusations play out in the fraught debate over corporate expressions of progressive values — especially in light of the uproar over Bud Light’s association with a transgender influencer.

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