Twitter and Facebook were the first of many companies to take action. In a short span of time, he had lost almost all access to his preferred microphone. With a few unilateral decisions, a small group of tech executives deprived the president of the United States of his most influential broadcasting tools, curtailing his ability to command attention and drive the news cycle from his mobile phone at a moment's notice.įor more than four years, Trump had harnessed his social media accounts to drive the news cycle, set policy, move markets and rile up his base, often issuing statements or making declarations before his aides were aware of his plans.

The Facebook and Twitter suspensions were a landmark moment for America's social media giants and the most visible demonstration yet of their absolute power. (Dorsey has spent a great deal of time with Jay-Z in recent months, in both Hawaii and the Hamptons.)Īfter a series of conversations with Gadde and other top Twitter executives, Dorsey approved a permanent ban, even though he would later express reservations over his power to so heavily influence 'the global public conversation.' Twitter announced the ban Friday. Based on the counsel of Vijaya Gadde, Twitter's legal chief and his most trusted lieutenant, Dorsey had come to believe that the appropriate course of action was to ban Trump's personal account permanently on the grounds that his ability to post presented a risk to public safety.ĭorsey was in French Polynesia, having spent much of the past year away from the San Francisco Bay Area largely preoccupied with other projects: Square, his mobile payment company the future of cryptocurrency and a potential acquisition of Jay-Z's music streaming platform, Tidal. The same day, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey was considering a far more radical move, sources familiar with Twitter's deliberations said. Shortly thereafter, Zuckerberg published a Facebook post explaining that 'the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great.'

Twitter video down