Facebook parent Meta said Wednesday it will restore former President Donald Trump 91裸聊视频榮 personal account in the coming weeks, ending a two-year suspension it imposed in the wake of the Jan. 6 insurrection.
The company said in a blog post it is adding 91裸聊视频渘ew guardrails91裸聊视频� to ensure there are no 91裸聊视频渞epeat offenders91裸聊视频� who violate its rules, even if they are political candidates or world leaders.
91裸聊视频淭he public should be able to hear what their politicians are saying 91裸聊视频� the good, the bad and the ugly 91裸聊视频� so that they can make informed choices at the ballot box,91裸聊视频� wrote Nick Clegg, Meta91裸聊视频檚 vice president of global affairs.
Clegg added that when there is a 91裸聊视频渃lear risk91裸聊视频� to real-world harm, Meta will intervene.
91裸聊视频淚n the event that Mr. Trump posts further violating content, the content will be removed and he will be suspended for between one month and two years, depending on the severity of the violation,91裸聊视频� he wrote. Facebook suspended Trump on Jan. 7, 2021, for praising people engaged in violent acts at the Capitol a day earlier. But the company had resisted earlier calls 91裸聊视频� including from its own employees 91裸聊视频� to remove Trump91裸聊视频檚 account.
Meta said Trump91裸聊视频檚 accounts will be restored 91裸聊视频渋n the coming weeks91裸聊视频� on both Facebook and Instagram. Banned from mainstream social media, Trump has been relying on Truth Social, which he launched after being blocked from Twitter.
Facebook is not only the world91裸聊视频檚 largest social media site, but had been a crucial source of fundraising revenue for Trump91裸聊视频檚 campaigns, which spent millions of dollars on the company91裸聊视频檚 ads in 2016 and 2020. The move, which comes as Trump is ramping up his third run for the White House, will not only allow Trump to communicate directly with his 34 million followers 91裸聊视频� dramatically more than the 4.8 million who currently follow him on Truth Social 91裸聊视频� but will also allow him to resume direct fundraising. During the suspension, his supporters were able to raise money for him, but couldn91裸聊视频檛 run ads directly from him or in his voice.
Responding to the news, Trump blasted Facebook91裸聊视频檚 original decision to suspend his account as he praised Truth Social.
91裸聊视频淔ACEBOOK, which has lost Billions of Dollars in value since 91裸聊视频渄eplatforming91裸聊视频� your favorite President, me, has just announced that they are reinstating my account. Such a thing should never again happen to a sitting President, or anybody else who is not deserving of retribution!91裸聊视频� he wrote.
Other social media companies, including Snapchat, where he remains suspended, also kicked him off their platforms following the insurrection. He was recently reinstated on Twitter after Elon Musk took over the company. He has not tweeted yet.
Civil rights groups and others on the left were quick to denounce Meta91裸聊视频檚 move. Letting Trump back on Facebook sends a signal to other figures with large online audiences that they may break the rules without lasting consequences, said Heidi Beirich, founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism and a member of a group called the Real Facebook Oversight Board that has criticized the platform91裸聊视频檚 efforts.
91裸聊视频淚 am not surprised but it is a disaster,91裸聊视频� Beirich said of Meta91裸聊视频檚 decision. 91裸聊视频淔acebook created loopholes for Trump that he went right through. He incited an insurrection on Facebook. And now he91裸聊视频檚 back.91裸聊视频�
NAACP President Derrick Johnson blasted the decision as 91裸聊视频渁 prime example of putting profits above people91裸聊视频檚 safety91裸聊视频� and a 91裸聊视频済rave mistake.91裸聊视频�
91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 quite astonishing that one can spew hatred, fuel conspiracies, and incite a violent insurrection at our nation91裸聊视频檚 Capitol building, and Mark Zuckerberg still believes that is not enough to remove someone from his platforms,91裸聊视频� he said.
But Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University called the reinstatement 91裸聊视频渢he right call 91裸聊视频� not because the former president has any right to be on the platform but because the public has an interest in hearing directly from candidates for political office.91裸聊视频�
The ACLU also called it the right move.
91裸聊视频淟ike it or not, President Trump is one of the country91裸聊视频檚 leading political figures and the public has a strong interest in hearing his speech. Indeed, some of Trump91裸聊视频檚 most offensive social media posts ended up being critical evidence in lawsuits filed against him and his administration,91裸聊视频� said Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union. 91裸聊视频淭he biggest social media companies are central actors when it comes to our collective ability to speak 91裸聊视频� and hear the speech of others 91裸聊视频� online. They should err on the side of allowing a wide range of political speech, even when it offends.91裸聊视频�
Clegg said that in light of his previous violations, Trump now faces heightened penalties for repeat offenses. Such penalties 91裸聊视频渨ill apply to other public figures whose accounts are reinstated from suspensions related to civil unrest under our updated protocol.91裸聊视频�
If Trump 91裸聊视频� or anyone else 91裸聊视频� posts material that doesn91裸聊视频檛 violate Facebook91裸聊视频檚 rules but is otherwise harmful and could lead to events such as the Jan. 6 insurrection, Meta says it will not remove it but it may limit its reach. This includes praising the QAnon conspiracy theory or trying to delegitimize an upcoming election.
While Trump has insisted publicly that he has no intention of returning to Twitter, he has been discussing doing so in recent weeks, according to two people familiar with the plans who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.
Though it has been eclipsed culturally by newer rivals like TikTok, Facebook remains the world91裸聊视频檚 largest social media site and is an incredibly powerful political platform, particularly among older Americans, who are most likely to vote and give money to campaigns.
Throughout his tenure as president, Trump91裸聊视频檚 use of social media posed a significant challenge to major social media platforms trying to balance the public91裸聊视频檚 need to hear from their elected leaders with worries about misinformation, harassment and incitement of violence.
91裸聊视频淚n a healthier information ecosystem, the decisions of a single company would not carry such immense political significance, and we hope that new platforms will emerge to challenge the hegemony of the social media giants,91裸聊视频� the ACLU91裸聊视频檚 Romero said.
91裸聊视频斺赌斺赌�
Associated Press Writer David Klepper in Washington and AP Technology Writer Frank Bajak in Boston contributed to this story.
By Barbara Ortutay And Jill Colvin ()
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
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