Reversing the Trump bans
Even before Musk made his stunning bid to buy Twitter, there was pushback in some quarters, including from those politically at odds with Trump, for banning a sitting world leader.
The decision, which was quickly praised by a number of civil rights groups, was made “with the best information we had based on threats to physical safety both on and off Twitter” and after a clear warning to Trump, he said.
In the nearly 18 months since then, there has been widespread speculation that Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and other platforms would eventually review their suspensions of Trump, especially if he decides to launch another bid for the White House in 2024. Unlike Twitter, Facebook and YouTube had implemented indefinite, but not necessarily permanent, suspensions.
Nick Clegg, now the president of global affairs at Facebook-parent Meta, previously said that once the two years ended, Facebook would “look to experts to assess whether the risk to public safety has receded” to decide whether to restore Trump’s account.
Musk’s deal to acquire Twitter is set to close by the end of this year, and if he acts quickly to reverse the Trump ban, it could give Meta and YouTube an opportunity to observe potential fallout from users and advertisers. Perhaps more importantly, it could also give the rival platforms political cover to make the same move.
Tech platforms tend to move in packs on everything from tricky policy decisions to new features. And this may be especially true when Twitter is leading the way.
Although far from perfect, Twitter has, at least historically, been viewed as “more nuanced in their content moderation” and as “trying to do the right thing more often than other platforms,” said Kristin Martin, professor of technology ethics at the University of Notre Dame.
“So I do think that whether they reverse the ban or start to allow certain content through, it will make a difference in the industry because they’re leaders.”
Meta and YouTube declined to comment on this story.
