As reported by the Financial Times, Meta is considering whether Donald Trump will get his Facebook and Instagram accounts back. These were locked down after the Capitol storming and are expected to remain locked down until at least early 2023, Facebook vice president Nick Clegg said in a statement at the time.
Meta confirmed in August that the blockade would not be lifted prematurely even if Trump were to run for president again. In the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, which has been renamed Meta, politicians and other well-known figures have special rights: they can also spread false information. Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg justifies it by saying that the public has a right to know all the information about certain people. It is part of his idea of broad freedom of expression.
However, because Trump incited violence, which sometimes led to the storming of the Capitol, it was decided to freeze the then president’s accounts anyway. The Supervisory Body, an independent body set up by Facebook, later confirmed that decision but requests a review, expected in January 2023. Now a team would have to decide in advance whether it will be released, so the Financial Times.
Trump stays with Truth Social
Trump was also blocked on Twitter. New owner Elon Musk lifted the ban a few weeks ago after publishing a survey about it. However, Donald Trump is not yet using his account. Instead, he continues to stick to his own social network, Truth Social. However, funds and members are said to be lacking.
Trump also invoked free speech in the constitution after losing access to his Twitter account. But a federal judge in the US state of California has dismissed a lawsuit: Twitter is a private company and the First Amendment, which protects freedom of expression, applies to government interference, but not to alleged interference by private companies, he said .
(emw)
