In connection with the US election campaign, Meta has also lifted the latest restrictions on the accounts of former US President and re-election candidate Donald Trump. The company made the announcement on Friday along with updates to its guidelines for celebrities.
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Trump under surveillance
Trump’s accounts on Facebook and Instagram have come under increased scrutiny since January 2023. After a two-year ban, the accounts were re-released, but smaller violations would mean another ban and harsher restrictions.
Meta indefinitely suspended Donald Trump’s accounts in January 2021 after his supporters attacked the White House in Washington on January 6. The company feared Trump might use its platform to stir up further controversy.
Meta’s in-house but nominally independent supervisory board approved the ban, but also advocated limiting it to two years. An indefinite ban does not fall under the platform’s rules.
Other social media outlets also took action against Trump’s accounts and cancelled them. Twitter also suspended Trump’s account shortly after the January 6 incident. After Elon Musk took over, the platform reopened the former president’s account.
Meanwhile, Trump has resorted to evasive tactics in the face of sharp reactions from major platforms. In addition to his blog, Trump also founded the social network Truth Social, which has not yet established itself properly.
Clearing the way for election campaign
Since the ban was lifted, Trump has been facing increasingly stringent regulations. The company has now lifted that too. In view of Trump’s nomination as the Republican presidential candidate and the start of the election campaign Emphasis on meta“The American people should be able to hear from presidential candidates on an equal basis.”
The Met lifted the last of these restrictions for Trump last Friday, in view of the Republican nomination convention tomorrow, Monday. Trump was slightly injured when he was shot in a failed assassination attempt during a campaign event on Saturday. A visitor to the event and the shooter died in the attack.
(vbr)
