The company warned that politicians will be treated like other users when they violate the rules of the social network, in particular in case of misinformation.
Facebook announced this Friday that the suspension of the account of former United States President Donald Trump will be two years, the maximum punishment. The sanction is given for violating the rules of the social network for disinformation and hate speech that led to the seizure of the Capitol by his followers to try to stop the certification of the election of Joe Biden.
It may interest you: Silencing Trump, a social error?
“Given the severity of the circumstances that led to Mr. Trump’s suspension, we believe his actions constituted a serious violation of our rules that merit the highest penalty available under the new protocols,” said Facebook Vice President of Global Affairs Nick Clegg, in a post.
Facebook also said that politicians will be treated like other users when they violate the rules of the social network, in particular in case of misinformation.
Trump was strongly criticized and even accused of being responsible for the seizure of the United States Capitol on January 6. For this reason, he has also been blocked from other social networks, Twitter being the most sensitive for the ex-president.
It may interest you: Banned from social networks, Trump launches his own digital platform
Since he assumed his presidency, Trump dedicated himself to governing from Twitter: @realDonaldTrump had more than 88 million followers. But it also became his tool for spreading conspiracy theories, fake news, and hate. According to The Washington Post, as of October 2020, he had made 15,413 false or misleading claims: 14.6 lies a day.
Faced with the two-year suspension, Trump said it is an “insult” to his voters and took the opportunity to insist that they had stolen the 2020 presidential elections.
“Facebook’s decision is an insult to a record 75 million people, plus many others, who voted for us in the rigged 2020 presidential election. They should not be allowed to get away with this censorship and silencing. In the end, we will win. Our country cannot take this abuse anymore! ”Trump said in a statement.
