Key points:

  • Donald Trump returns to Instagram and Facebook nearly two years after he was banned from both platforms. 
  • Meta announced that it will reinstate the former President’s account with new “guardrails in place” to discourage repeat offences. 
  • The decision comes just over two years after Meta decided to ban his accounts after the January 6 Capitol riots. 

Donald Trump will return to Facebook and Instagram after a two-year gap. Meta suspended Trump’s account in 2021 after the January 6 Capitol building riots. The company said that it will reinstate the former President’s account with “new guardrails in place” that will prevent repeat offences. 

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Wait, what? Donald Trump has released his own NFT collection?

Why is Meta reinstating Trump’s accounts?

Meta has announced that Donald Trump will soon be back on Instagram and Facebook after his accounts will be reinstated. The announcement comes just over years after his accounts were suspended due to a few controversial posts about the January 6 riot incident at the Capitol. 

Nick Clegg, Meta’s President of Global Affairs said that Trump will make a comeback in the next few weeks as the company has introduced “new guardrails in place to discourage repeat offences. For those who don’t know, Meta owns Instagram and Facebook. 

What are these guardrails? Some of these include “heavy penalties for repeat offences.” These penalties will primarily apply to all public figures whose accounts are likely to be reinstated due to suspensions due to civil unrest under Meta’s revised protocol. 

How is Trump reacting to this news?

Trump spoke about the announcement on his own social media platform, Truth Social. He said that “Facebook has just announced that they are reinstating my account after losing billions of dollars in worth after “de-platforming” me, your favourite President. He also said that a President who is currently in office or anyone else who is not deserving of such punishment should never experience such a thing again. 

More about Trump’s ban on 

According to a June 2021 announcement from Facebook, Trump was banned from Facebook and Instagram until at least this month as a result of a “serious violation of our rules” related to his involvement in the riot on January 6, 2021.

The accounts were initially shut down after Trump’s messages to the rioters asking them to return home and calling them “very wonderful” and “amazing patriots.”

The ban was initially set to last 24 hours, but Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg extended it till the end of his tenure after stating that “the risks of permitting the President to continue using our service during this period are simply too significant.”

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Trump Media & Technology Group to launch TRUTH Social

Continue exploring iTMunch for more such stories and articles.

Feature Image Source: National Archives and Records Administration