Former U.S. President Donald Trump has recently launched a new social media platform following his profile deplatforming on major social media outlets, most notably Twitter
For several months, he has promised this new social media platform to the public following his ban in the wake of the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. This particular "platform" is set up like Twitter, and people can sign up to receive alerts via email or phone number. They also are able to "like" the posts, and to share Trump's posts on Twitter and Facebook.
"Generally, sharing content from the website reference is permitted as long as the material does not otherwise violate the Twitter rules," a Twitter spokesperson said to The Verge. Although the platform has launched recently, there are nevertheless still posts that date back as far as March 24.
In one of Trump's recent video posts, he advertises his new platform, and refers to it as "a place to speak freely and safely, straight from the desk of Donald Trump." Fox News has implied that Trump will one day be able to speak with his supporters more directly, though it is unclear as to how this will specifically occur.
"It is a blog," Kara Swisher, technology columnist for the New York Times said to BBC Radio 4's Today program. "I was like '2002 is calling and it wants its blog back. I don't know what the overall plan is because he does have some very sharp digital advisers. It is just the beginning of his attempts to try to re-establish a louder ability to participate in digital media."
The website has been built by Campaign Nucleus, a digital services company that was made by Trump's prior campaign manager, Brad Parscale. Trump is also utilizing his ban from sites like Facebook and Twitter to label each of them as "a total disgrace."
"Free speech has been taken away from the President of the United States because the radical left lunatics are afraid of the truth," he said. "The people of our country will not stand for it! These corrupt social media companies must pay a political price, and must never again be allowed to destroy and decimate our electoral process."
Trump's creation of a new social media platform will surely prove to raise a bit of controversy, given his past history on the main social media platforms of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. But as long as Trump is adhering to specified guidelines and policies, then he will be able to communicate with his supporters directly again.
