Facebook recently announced the lifting of restrictions placed on Donald Trump in the aftermath of the January 6 attack on the Capitol. This decision places the former president on an equal footing on the platform with current President Joe Biden just before the Republican National Convention. Initially banned from using Facebook’s platforms in 2021 following the Capitol riot, Trump’s ban was lifted by Meta, Facebook’s parent company, last year with the condition that he would face “heightened suspension penalties” if his posts violated their standards. However, these restrictions have now been removed as Trump has not violated them since they were put into place.
The reasoning behind lifting the restrictions was due to the belief that the American people should have the opportunity to hear from both presidential candidates equally, according to a statement by Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs. Clegg emphasized that both Biden and Trump are still subjected to the same “community standards” that apply to all users of Facebook and Instagram. Trump’s presence on Facebook has been crucial in previous campaigns for publicity and gathering donations from supporters, given the platform’s status as the world’s largest social media site. However, Trump has now been posting frequently on his own platform, Truth Social, which he launched after being suspended from Facebook and other social media platforms.
