Meta to restore Trump’s accounts
Meta will soon reinstate former US President Donald Trump on Facebook and Instagram, reviving his accounts two years after they were banned
Meta to restore Trump’s accounts
Meta has said it will reinstate former US President Donald Trump on both Facebook and Instagram more than two years after he was kicked off the platforms, but stressed that it would create new “guardrails” for his account to prevent “repeat offenses.”
announced the move on Wednesday, saying the decision to ban Trump was made under “extraordinary circumstances” following the riot at the US Capitol building in January 2021. After finding there was no longer “serious risk to public safety,” the company said Trump could return, but with a few caveats.
“We will be reinstating Mr. Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts in the coming weeks. However, we are doing so with new guardrails in place to deter repeat offenses,” Meta said in a statement, adding that “In light of his violations, he now also faces heightened penalties.”
Under those restrictions, any “further violating content” will result in another ban for a period of one month to two years, the platform said. Content that does not explicitly violate the rules, but which “contributes to the sort of risk that materialized on January 6,” including posts “related to QAnon,” may also be limited in users’ feeds.
filed a petition with Meta seeking to reinstate his accounts, weeks after declaring plans to run for president again in 2024. His campaign reportedly told the company that Trump’s Facebook ban had “dramatically distorted and inhibited the public discourse,” and asked for a meeting to discuss the issue.
“the public should be able to hear from a former president of the United States, and a declared candidate for that office again,” saying it did not want to “get in the way of open, public and democratic debate.”