The X account of Sesame Street’s Elmo, a beloved children’s television character, shared antisemitic and anti-Donald Trump posts after being hacked, US media reported on Monday.
A slew of messages calling for the extermination of Jewish people and labelling the US president a “puppet” of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were shared on the account, according to the reports.
Around 650,000 users follow Elmo, the fuzzy red monster who teaches his young audience about kindness and patience.
Sesame Workshop, the charity behind Sesame Street, said an unidentified hacker was behind the posts, which were published on Sunday afternoon before being removed.
“Elmo’s X account was compromised today by an unknown hacker who posted disgusting messages, including antisemitic and racist posts,” it said in a statement carried by The New York Times newspaper.
The hacking on Elon Musk’s X platform is the latest in a string of hate speech incidents since the billionaire bought then-Twitter in 2022 and axed moderation policies that he considers censorship.
