The only question was how Twitter would enforce its own commitment. It said that future violations “will result” in Trump being booted off the platform. Twitter did not say that future violations might lead to a ban, or could lead to a ban. The wording of the statement, however, left it abundantly clear: Trump was on thin ice. Asked for comment earlier Friday, the company merely reiterated what it said in its tweet.

It’s unclear how many violations Twitter may have meant. It took an assault on Congress for Facebook and Twitter to draw a line on Trump (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) Jose Luis Magana/AP Supporters of President Donald Trump climb the west wall of the the U.S. Trump could regain access to tweeting if he complied with the requirement, as he did.īut, Twitter warned, “future violations of the Twitter Rules, including our Civic Integrity or Violent Threats policies, will result in permanent suspension of the account.” On Wednesday, when it first imposed its temporary lockdown on Trump’s account, Twitter explained that the violence in Washington had forced the company’s hand. Twitter ultimately decided it was time for the nuclear option. Those decisions mean that these platforms - perhaps conveniently - will no longer have to moderate Trump’s content for as long as he remains president. Mark Zuckerberg announced that Trump would be banned from posting on Facebook and Instagram for at least two weeks, if not “indefinitely.” Snapchat and Twitch blocked Trump completely Shopify shut down online stores tied to Trump. It merely required that Trump remove three incendiary tweets, followed by a 12-hour inability to tweet.Įven as Trump spent much of Thursday in Twitter timeout, a number of platforms went further. Still, although Twitter was the first major social media platform to penalize Trump for his actions this week, its punishment was hardly the most severe until Friday evening. For the first time in four years, it seemed, Trump will need to appease Twitter more than Twitter needs to appease him. With those claims having reached their zenith by spurring a full-blown riot, Wednesday saw the most aggressive moves yet by Twitter and other companies to rein Trump in. Last spring, the company began applying warning labels to Trump’s tweets in an attempt to correct his misleading claims ahead of the election it arguably had the opposite effect, prompting Trump to retaliate with an executive order and ever more baseless claims of election fraud. (Photo credit should read Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images) Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Imagesįacebook bans Trump from posting for remainder of his term in officeīut as Trump neared the end of his term - and as public pressure grew against the platform - the balance shifted. Twitter took a light-touch approach to moderating his account, often arguing that as a public official, Trump must be given wide latitude to speak.įacebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg testifies during a US House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing about Facebook on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, April 11, 2018. It was a game of chicken that Trump, whose entire presidency has been devoted to breaking rules and testing boundaries, barely got to play.įor the last four years, Twitter was central to Trump’s presidency, a fact that also benefited the company in the form of countless hours of user engagement.

It happened even more quickly than many would have thought. Even one more transgression could land Trump in Twitter jail - forever. As Trump reemerged, the company faced a test of its commitment that any further violations of its policies by the President would result in a permanent ban. He would tweet twice more before Twitter determined it had finally had enough.įor Twitter, the challenge of what to do about Trump’s account was poised to only get more difficult, not less. In his first tweet since being let out of the penalty box, Trump shared a video conceding that he will be a one-term president. President Donald Trump’s tweeting privileges were briefly restored following Twitter’s temporary lock on his account this week for inciting what became a violent insurrection at the US Capitol.

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