Facebook and Instagram are banning President Donald Trump from their platforms beginning Thursday.
“We believe the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great. Therefore, we are extending the block we have placed on his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transition of power is complete,” Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote.
BREAKING: Zuckerberg says Facebook and Instagram are blocking President Trump from using their services indefinitely. pic.twitter.com/JHxZvmjqiu
— NBC News (@NBCNews) January 7, 2021
Zuckerberg announced the decision on his own Facebook page, citing Wednesday’s tumultuous, destructive events at the Capitol as one of the main reasons for the ban.
https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10112681480907401
Zuckerberg continued by claiming that the company needed to remove the president to ensure the “peaceful and lawful transition of power to his elected successor, Joe Biden.” While the CEO claims the block will last for “at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transition of power is complete,” he left the actual length of the ban open-ended.
Facebook previously announced on Wednesday that it would remove all photos and videos of the Capitol riots because they promoted criminal activity. This decision followed the big tech company’s censorship and removal of Trump’s video calling for peace and rule of law at the Capitol, claiming it instigated more violence.
“His decision to use his platform to condone rather than condemn the actions of his supporters at the Capitol building has rightly disturbed people in the US and around the world. We removed these statements yesterday because we judged that their effect — and likely their intent — would be to provoke further violence,” Zuckerberg wrote in his most recent statement.
Twitter also recently announced a 12-hour lock on Trump’s account on Wednesday following a series of now-deleted posts that the company claims violated its Civic Integrity policy.
