Former US President Donald Trump has his Facebook ban upheld by the oversight board and has an “indefinite suspension”. In response to bans from a number of social media platforms he has launched a website.
On 7 January Facebook’s board decided to restrict Mr Trump’s access to posting content on his Facebook page and Instagram account. This move came after his supporters stormed the US Capitol.
Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg set up the Oversight Board to rule on difficult or controversial moderation decisions, and give recommendations. However, it operates as an independent entity, and often referred to as “Facebook’s Supreme Court. The board includes journalists, human rights activists, lawyers and academics.
Mr Trump was also banned from other social media platforms too, including Twitter, who say the ban is permanent. YouTube however, say they will restore the former president’s channel when the risk of violence has reduced.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump launched a space on his own website this week. Here he posts messages for others to share on their own social networking pages. The website, From The Desk Of Donald J Trump, is built by a digital services company created by Mr Trump’s former campaign manager.
The decision of a permanent ban is criticised as beyond the scope of Facebook’s normal penalties. They are ordered to review it and “justify a proportionate response” that is applied to everyone.
But for now, the ruling means that Mr Trump’s suspension remains in place.
Why the suspension?
After the Capitol Hill riots on 6 January, Facebook announced the ban of Mr Trump. The reason given was for breaking its rules on “glorification of violence”.
Hundreds of Trump supporters caused riots as the US Congress attempted to certify Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election. As a result, five people even lost their lives in the incident.
However, in his second impeachment trial in February, Mr Trump was cleared of the charge of inciting and encouraging violence.
The social network originally imposed a 24 hour ban after the attack, but then extended it “indefinitely”. In addition, Mr Zuckerberg says the risks of allowing Mr Trump to post are “simply too great”.
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