• Elmo's X account was hacked, resulting in antisemitic and racist posts.
• The hacker called for violence against Jewish communities and insulted President Trump.
• Sesame Workshop confirmed the hack and is working to secure the account.
• The offensive messages were deleted shortly after being posted.
• The incident highlights issues of content moderation on social media platforms.

Sesame Street’s beloved character Elmo had his official X account hacked on July 14, leading to a series of antisemitic and racist messages being posted. The account, which has over 650,000 followers, was compromised by an unknown hacker who shared posts calling for violence against Jewish people and deriding President Donald Trump, according to SFGate.

A spokesperson for Sesame Workshop confirmed the breach, describing the content as "disgusting" and emphasized their effort to regain control of the account, which typically shares uplifting messages. These offensive posts included slurs and references to the controversial Jeffrey Epstein case, leading to a widespread outrage among netizens, according to HuffPost, Reuters, and IndiaTimes.

The posts were reportedly live for a short time before being deleted, indicating a swift response to a situation that markedly contrasts with Elmo's usual message of kindness and positivity. This incident forms part of broader scrutiny over the moderation policies of X, particularly since Elon Musk's acquisition of the platform in 2022, which has seen a rise in extremist content, as noted by CBS News and Channel News Asia.

While Sesame Workshop has since regained control of Elmo’s account, the incident stresses the ongoing issues surrounding online hate speech and the impact of social media management on public perceptions, particularly for a character that symbolizes childhood innocence, as reported by Reuters and Al Jazeera.