A Texas judge has denied Elon Musk's request to dismiss the case against Media Matters, allowing the trial to proceed.

• A judge in Texas has denied Media Matters' request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Elon Musk's X.
• In November, a lawsuit was filed by X after a report from Media Matters revealed that hateful content on the platform was displayed alongside online ads from companies such as Apple, IBM, and Disney.
• The nonprofit media watchdog and two of its staff members will face trial on April 7 due to U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor's decision to allow X's lawsuit to proceed.

A judge in Texas has denied Media Matters' request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Elon Musk's X.

On April 7, X's lawsuit against the nonprofit media watchdog and two of its staff members will proceed to trial due to U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor's decision on Thursday.

In November, Twitter, previously known as X, filed a lawsuit against Media Matters after a report revealed that hateful content on the platform was displayed alongside ads from companies like Apple, IBM, and Disney. As a result, these companies paused their X advertising campaigns.

The attorneys for X asserted that the Media Matters report was intentionally misleading and caused financial harm to the company.

At the time, Angelo Carusone, one of the defendants, stated that the "frivolous lawsuit" was "intended to intimidate X's critics into remaining silent."

O'Connor rejected the nonprofit's attempt to dismiss the case, stating in a filing that the plaintiff had correctly stated its claims.

Media Matters and X didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

In August, O'Connor rejected a demand from Media Matters to compel Musk to declare himself as an interested party in X's lawsuit against the nonprofit. O'Connor stated in a legal document that there was no proof indicating that Tesla had a direct financial stake in the case's outcome.

O'Connor was overseeing a recently filed antitrust lawsuit by X against a global advertising association and its member companies, including Unilever, Mars, and CVS Health. However, he later recused himself from the lawsuit without providing a reason. It was later discovered that the judge had a financial interest in Unilever through investments.

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