Twitter said Trump would have to take down the post and two other tweets of his false allegations of an illegal election, and that his account would remain closed until 12 hours after he did so.
“Future violations of Twitter rules, including our policies on civil integrity or violent threats, will result in the permanent suspension of the @realDonaldTrump account,” the company said. “Our public interest policy – which has guided our enforcement action in this area for many years – ends where we believe the risk of harm is greater and / or worse.”
Facebook followed up later Wednesday, announcing that it would introduce a ’24-hour function block ‘that would temporarily deprive Trump of his ability to post. Facebook’s Instagram platform said it will close its account there as well
It was the worst performance of two social media platforms against Trump to date. A Twitter spokesman said it was the first time the company had closed Trump’s account for violations unrelated to the claims of copyright infringement.
A flood of Democratic lawmakers has called on the platforms to take more permanent action against Trump.
“Enough is enough!” tweeted House Chairman of Energy and Trade, Frank Pallone (DN.J.). “Trump encourages violence and spreads dangerous misinformation that undermines our democracy and our way of life. Social media continues to reinforce its anti-democratic rhetoric.”
He added: ‘It’s time for [Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey] and [Facebook CEO] Mark Zuckerberg to remove Trump from their platforms. ”
The social media companies have long received criticism from democratic leaders, civil rights groups and other advocates for not enforcing their anti-violence policies on their platforms as far as Trump and his allies are concerned. The company has long treated world leaders differently than ordinary users in dealing with violations of its rules, citing public interest in knowing about their messages.
According to a company spokesperson, YouTube removed the video, saying the message violated its policies in violation of the content of widespread voter fraud during the 2020 election. The spokesman said YouTube would allow users to re-post the video if it contained additional educational context.
Initially, Facebook handled the message by adding a label that led users to authoritative sources of information about the election: “The US has laws, procedures and institutions to ensure the integrity of our election.” But this later increased his decision by removing the post altogether, and To block Trump for a period of 24 hours.
“This is an emergency and we are taking appropriate emergency measures, including the removal of President Trump’s video,” tweeted Facebook integrity chief Guy Rosen. “We have removed it because we believe it contributes to the risk of continuing violence, rather than reducing it.”
Twitter blocked users within minutes from replying to, liking, or retweeting the message without additional context, citing a ‘risk of violence’. But it did not say it would require Trump to remove the post only hours later, nor did it suspend his Twitter account, despite calls for action by people and groups saying the president had the platform for use social media to incite violence..
Trump used the video to still falsely claim that he, not elected President Joe Biden, won in November.
“It was a big election and everyone knows it, especially the other side, but you have to go home now. We must have peace. We need law and order, ”Trump said in the video hours after a mob of rioters stormed the Capitol building and stormed the chambers of the House and Senate.
Twitter initially has the visibility of a tweet in which Trump seems to justify the violence, writes: “These are the things and events that happen when a sacred, overwhelming election victory is so ceremoniously and maliciously taken away from great patriots who have been treated badly and unfairly for so long.”
He added: “Go home with love and in peace. Remember this day forever!”
The company also applied the same restrictions to an earlier tweet Wednesday in which the president said that Pence, who refused to use his role as president of the Senate to block the election results, “did not have the courage to do what needed to be done.” It was later said that both posts would have to be removed to get Trump back on his account.
Twitter’s Department of Public Safety tweeted that the social media company is “working proactively to protect the health of the public conversation that takes place on the service and will take action against any content that violates the rules. The social media platform also said that it” investigate other increased enforcement actions “without expanding it.
Amid the riots on Wednesday, social media platforms showed up to suspend or remove Trump, which led to Capitol Hill being locked up and lawmakers having to evacuate in gas masks while police disperse tear gas against rioters.
Jonathan Greenblatt, chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League, issued a statement on Wednesday saying that “social media companies should suspend their accounts as soon as possible as they would for anyone else who advocates disinformation and promotes violence.”
Rashad Robinson, president of the advocacy group Color of Change, tweeted on Wednesday: “Enough is enough. It’s time for Facebook and Twitter to kick Trump off their platforms. ”