Last month, the President of Global Affairs at Meta, Nick Clegg, revealed in a blog post that the company would lift the ban on the former president’s accounts.
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) has confirmed that former US president Donald Trump can now access his Facebook and Instagram accounts. Meta suspended the former POTUS from the social media platforms after determining that his accounts posed high risks of further inciting violence during the insurrection on the 6th of January, 2021. At the time, Trump posted comments that the 2020 election had been stolen and commended the violent protesters. Due to his claims, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg took to Facebook to say that the former president planned to use the last weeks of his tenure to “undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power.” This led to the indefinite ban on Trump’s Instagram and Facebook accounts. Eventually, Meta decided to suspend the account for two years.
Last month, the President of Global Affairs at Meta, Nick Clegg, revealed in a blog post that the company would lift the ban on the former president’s accounts. He specified that the suspension on the Instagram and Facebook accounts would end in a few weeks, and Trump will have access again. This comes after the team examined if the pages no longer pose serious risks, as earlier determined. Meta said it has “evaluated the current environment,” using its Crisis Policy Protocol before deciding to lift the ban.
“Our determination is that the risk has sufficiently receded and that we should therefore adhere to the two-year timeline we set out. As such, 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 Sets “Guardrails” as Trump Once Again Has Access to Facebook and Instagram Accounts
Clegg wrote that Trump is subject to Meta’s Community Standards like any other Facebook and Instagram user. At the same time, he is exposed to more intense penalties if he becomes a repeat offender. In such a case, the violating content will be removed, and he will face a month to two years suspension, depending on the gravity of his offense. The technology company noted that the updated protocol also applies to content that poses risks. Meta will reduce the distribution of such posts by maintaining their visibility on the user account only. They will not be available on other timelines. The company said it may also remove the reshare button on such posts and prevent them from recommending or running as ads.
“We are taking these steps in light of the Oversight Board’s emphasis on high-reach and influential users and its emphasis on Meta’s role “to create necessary and proportionate penalties that respond to severe violations of its content policies.”
Meta stock is currently trading down 0.52% to $177.00 after-hours. The company’s stock price has added almost 48% since the year started.
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