Facebook’s parent company Meta announced Wednesday that it will restore former President Donald Trump’s personal account in the coming weeks, lifting the two-year suspension it imposed after the Jan.
Nick Clegg, Meta’s vice president of international affairs, said, “People should be able to hear what politicians are saying, the good, the bad, the ugly. Then they will vote. You can make informed decisions on the box.
Clegg added that Meta will intervene if there is a “clear risk” of harm occurring in the real world.
“If Trump continues to post content that infringes copyright, that content will be removed and he will be suspended from one month to two years, depending on the severity of the offense,” he wrote. . Facebook suspended Trump in January. In September 2021, for praising those involved in violence in the Capitol the day before. However, the company has resisted previous calls, including from its own employees, asking it to delete Trump’s account.
Mehta said Trump’s accounts on both Facebook and Instagram will be restored “in the coming weeks.” Mainstream Social Banned from his media, Trump relies on his Truth Social, which he launched after being blocked from Twitter.
In addition to being the world’s largest social media site, Facebook has been a significant source of revenue for Trump’s campaign, which spent millions on advertising for the company in 2016 and his 2020. The move comes as Trump announced his candidacy for the third time at the White House, and not only will Trump be able to communicate directly with his 34 million followers, but you can now follow him on Truth Social. Significantly more than the 4.8 million people living in Resume direct fundraising. During the suspension, his supporters were able to raise money for him, but they were not able to place ads directly from him or in his voice.
In response to the news, Trump condemned Facebook for his initial decision to suspend his own account and praised his social truth.
“FACEBOOK, which has lost billions of dollars in value since removing me, your favorite president, from its platform, has announced that it will reactivate my account. Please don’t let it happen again to other undeserving people!” he wrote. Other social media companies, including Snapchat, where he’s suspended, also kicked him off their platforms after the riots. He recently made a comeback on Twitter after Elon Musk took over the company.
Civil rights groups and other left-wing groups were quick to condemn Meta’s move. Heidi Beirich, founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism and a member of a group called the Real Facebook Oversight Board, said allowing Trump to return to Facebook would have a large online audience. It will send a signal to others that the rules can be broken without lasting repercussions. Those who criticized the platform’s efforts. Beirich said of Meta’s decision, “It doesn’t surprise me, but it’s a disaster.” Facebook created a loophole that Trump went through. He rioted on Facebook.
NAACP President Derrick Johnson called the decision “a classic example of prioritizing profit over people’s safety” and a “grave mistake.”
“To be able to spout hate, incite conspiracies and instigate violent riots in our Capitol is so amazing that Mark Zuckerberg said it would take someone off their platform. I still believe it’s not enough.
But Jameel Jafar, executive director of Columbia University’s First Amendment Institute, said the reinstatement “has the right reputation. It’s not because the former president has the right to speak, but because the public is interested.” because I have it,” he said.
