Elon Musk says activist pressure on Twitter advertisers is an attempt to 'destroy free speech in America'

• Elon Musk said pressure on advertisers to boycott Twitter was an attempt to "destroy free speech."
• Companies including Pfizer and General Motors have reportedly paused their ads on the platform.

Elon Musk said activist pressure on advertisers to boycott Twitter had caused a "massive drop" in revenue and was an attempt to "destroy free speech in America."

The billionaire tweeted on Friday: "Twitter has had a massive drop in revenue, due to activist groups pressuring advertisers, even though nothing has changed with content moderation and we did everything we could to appease the activists."

"Extremely messed up! They're trying to destroy free speech in America," Musk added.

Companies including General Motors, Pfizer, General Mills and Volkswagen have reportedly paused their advertising on Twitter following Musk's takeover.

Meanwhile, there has been a surge in use of racist slurs on Twitter and rising concern that former president Donald Trump could be allowed back on the platform.

Musk is also under fire for his plan to make verified users pay $8 a month to keep their blue ticks. He has clashed with figures including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and author Stephen King on the issue.

Musk and Twitter did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.