“I’m back” – Trump returns to YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram after a two-year ban
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has returned to social media platforms Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, two years after he was banned following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on Congress by his followers.
Trump posted a video on Friday, March 17 that looked like it was from an earlier election speech.
He returns to the platforms to gain access to key platforms for political fundraising. This allows him to reach a combined total of 146 million followers across all three major tech platforms, as he makes another run for the presidency in 2024.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. Complicated business,” Trump was seen saying in the video, captioned “I’M BACK.”
YouTube restored Trump’s channel earlier on Friday.
“We carefully evaluated the continued risk of real-world violence, while balancing the chance for voters to hear equally from major national candidates in the run-up to an election,” YouTube said in a tweet, referring to its move to restore his account.
Meta Platforms Inc (META.O), owners of Facebook had reinstated Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts earlier this year, while his Twitter account was restored in November by the platform’s new owner Elon Musk. Trump has yet to post on Twitter.
Trump’s return to YouTube and Facebook is happening just as the Manhattan District Attorney’s office is considering criminal charges related to hush-money payments made to a porn star during Trump’s 2016 campaign, charges that Trump and his allies are arguing without
