Facebook’s oversight board decided to uphold a ban on Donald Trump’s Facebook account on Wednesday. The board decided to revisit the matter in six months.
The social media platform initially banned his use of Facebook after the Capitol riots on January 6th. Many experts claim that the former president incited and fueled violence on that day.
Specifically, the board suspended his account due to a post which praised rioters. The post violated Facebook’s policies and “created an environment where a serious risk of violence was possible.”
The decision is also applied to his Instagram, which is owned by Facebook. Across the two platforms, Trump commands over 60 million followers. His removal from both platforms was a huge blow, considering his predilection for using social media as a bully pulpit for his personal agendas.
The board’s decision has garnered mixed public opinion. It remains unclear whether the ban on Trump will remain indefinitely, since it would require creative interpretation of Facebook’s community guidelines.
The way Facebook has decided to handle this ban ushers in a new era of oversight. The board, which launched last fall, is intended to act as an independent committee or “supreme court”.
It remains unclear whether the board will have the intended outcomes. Only time will tell.
