Facebook suspends former US President Donald Trump for two years
Facebook announced Friday that it was suspending Donald Trump's activities for two years after he broke social media rules by cheering his supporters on in the January 6 assault on Capitol Hill in Washington. Donald Trump denounced an "insult" to his 75 million voters.
Facebook persists and signs. Mark Zuckerberg's social network announced Friday, June 4, to suspend former US President Donald Trump for two years, the maximum punishment after breaking platform rules during his supporters' assault on Capitol Hill on the 6th. January 2021.
Facebook has also said that politicians will be punished like ordinary users in the event of non-compliance with the rules, especially in the event of disinformation.
This ban was pronounced under this new tailor-made rule, also announced Friday and created by the Californian group in relation to the events of January 6. It provides for sanctions ranging from one month to two years of suspension for public figures in the event of unrest and violence, according to a press release. Repeat offenders can be permanently banned.
The former US president was temporarily excluded on January 7 for having encouraged his supporters during the attack on the Capitol in Washington, an unprecedented decision.
More than six months after his defeat at the polls, Donald Trump continues to give headaches to the social media giant, torn between concern to respect freedom of expression and the moral and economic necessity of cleaning up exchanges between his two, 85 billion monthly users.
An "insult" to Donald Trump's voters
The decision extends Donald Trump's suspension until at least January 2023. In May, Facebook's oversight committee had already upheld the decision, but the committee then ruled that the group could not impose an indefinite suspension, giving Facebook six months to determine "a proportionate response."
Reacting after the announcement, Donald Trump denounced an "insult" to the "75 million" Americans who voted for him in 2020. "Facebook's decision is an insult" to the "75 million people who voted for us. in 2020, "the ex-president said in a statement, adding that the social media giant" should not be allowed to get away with this censorship and muzzling ". "In the end, we will win. Our country can no longer bear these abuses!", He concluded.
Donald Trump's suspension was effective from the original date in January and will only be reinstated when "public safety risks are gone," the platform said. "Considering the gravity of the circumstances which led to the suspension of Donald Trump, we believe that his actions constituted a serious violation of our rules which deserve the highest sanction available under the new application protocols," said added the social network.
"Cauldron of extremism"
The council had especially called on the network to clarify its "arbitrary" rules: "the same rules should apply to all users", insisted its international and independent members.
Whose act: Facebook has just ended the very controversial immunity enjoyed by elected officials and candidates who break its rules, in the name of "the public's interest in being informed".
"When we evaluate content in terms of importance to the information, we will not treat the words of politicians differently from those of others," said Nick Clegg, the director of public affairs at the firm.
"Donald Trump has shown how a political leader can use social networks to undermine democratic institutions, such as elections and the peaceful transfer of power," said Paul Barrett, professor of law at New York University.
"Facebook is right to change its tactics and apply its rules against harmful behavior to policies."
But many NGOs consider that the network has for too long amplified the inflammatory remarks of the Republican billionaire, and should exclude him for good, like Twitter.
Company boss Mark Zuckerberg "admitted that Trump used Facebook to incite a violent insurgency. Despite this, Facebook continues to consider reestablishing Trump's account," said Angelo Carusone, chairman of the company. association Media Matters for America.
If he returned, the platform "would remain a cauldron of extremism, disinformation and violence," he continued.
"We love you"
Mark Zuckerberg has long refused to play the role of "arbiter of online truth."
A position that has become untenable with Donald Trump, quick to minimize the seriousness of the pandemic or to denounce, without proof, alleged electoral fraud. So many words that add fuel to the fire in a country that is already very divided.
The invasion of Congress, which killed several people, was a turning point. "We love you", said the former White House tenant in a video during the assault.
But Facebook had not returned to its list of political figures exempted from some of its rules and sanctions (on disinformation, in particular) so that the public could form their own opinion.
This preferential treatment drew a lot of criticism, including internally.
Facebook's reluctance to withdraw messages from Donald Trump a year ago, seen as support for police violence during protests against widespread racism, had been publicly disowned by employees.
The platform and its neighbors, like Twitter, have tightened their moderation of content, with a lot of reports backed up by problematic messages.
These initiatives do not prevent Democrats from blaming them for their ineffectiveness in containing disinformation, while Republicans accuse them of censorship.
The move comes on the same day that European and UK competition authorities launched investigations into possible anti-competitive behavior by Facebook in the online advertising industry.
