YouTube is the latest social media company to settle lawsuits for suspensions of President Donald Trump’s accounts in 2021 to the tune of millions of dollars.
Alphabet, the parent company for YouTube, agreed to pay $24.5 million to settle the lawsuit, according to a court filing Monday. The accounts had been shut down in the wake of the rioting at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
‘The public should be able to hear what their politicians are saying — the good, the bad, and the ugly.’
The majority of the settlement — $22 million — will go to the Trust for the National Mall nonprofit to pay for the construction of the ballroom at the White House.
Meta had settled a similar lawsuit for Trump’s account on Facebook, and X also settled a lawsuit with the president. Meta removed restrictions from his accounts on Facebook and Instagram in July 2024. Democrats at the time demanded the suspensions continue in order to quell Trump’s claims that the previous election had been stolen.
“Social media is rooted in the belief that open debate and the free flow of ideas are important values, especially at a time when they are under threat in many places around the world,” reads a Meta statement from 2023. “The public should be able to hear what their politicians are saying — the good, the bad, and the ugly — so that they can make informed choices at the ballot box.”
The bans on Trump’s account led to his joining the pro-Trump platform Truth Social, on which he continues to post his messages.
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