Meta reportedly to decide soon whether Trump can return to Facebook, Instagram
Social media firm has created a panel that will announce its final decision later this month, Financial Times reports; ex-US president was banned for inciting Capitol riot
Meta, the parent company of social media giants Facebook and Instagram, will announce later this month whether it will allow former US president Donald Trump back on the networks, according to a report Sunday.
Citing sources involved in the matter, Financial Times reported that the company has set up a working group to focus on the issue, made up of public policy, communications and content policy staffers.
Meta’s President of Global Affairs Nick Clegg declined to comment on the report, but told a conference held by the Council for Foreign Relations in October that private firms “should tread with great thoughtfulness when seeking to, basically, silence political voices.”
The company originally said it would announce its decision on Trump’s return to its social media sites by January 7.
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and many dominant social media platforms banned Trump in reaction to his role in stirring up the mob that ransacked the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, as it certified Joe Biden’s election victory.
In November, new Twitter owner Elon Musk restored Trump’s account after holding a poll on Twitter that asked users to click “yes” or “no” on whether Trump’s account should be restored. The “yes” vote won, getting 51.8 percent of the votes. Musk has frequently expressed his belief that Twitter had become too restrictive of freewheeling speech.
However, Trump has yet to tweet since the reversal, and it is unclear if he would return to Facebook and Instagram if given the opportunity.
The former president last year launched his own social media site, Truth Social, which he uses as his mode of communication with supporters, and where he continues to peddle 2020 election fraud conspiracies.
In November, Trump announced his 2024 presidential election run.
