Meta has agreed to pay $25 million to settle a lawsuit with Donald Trump. The lawsuit originated in 2021 when Trump’s account was suspended by a social media company due to his attack on the US Capitol on January 6. The settlement was first reported by the Wall Street Journal and later confirmed by a meta spokesperson.
According to the Wall Street Journal, $22 million of the settlement will go towards a fund for Trump’s Presidential Library, with the rest covering legal expenses and payments to other plaintiffs in the case. The White House has not yet provided a comment on the settlement.
The lawsuit against Facebook, Meta’s parent company, was one of several filed against social media companies by Trump following the events of January 6. Similar lawsuits were filed against YouTube, Twitter (now X), and their executives. The lawsuit against Twitter has been rejected by a federal judge. Google settled its suit in 2023 with the option to reopen the case.
A few months later, Facebook downgraded the suspension to 2 years. In 2023, Trump’s access was reinstated on Facebook and Instagram, as well as other platforms like Twitter and YouTube.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, has since reconciled with Trump, meeting with him multiple times and attending his inauguration ceremony. According to the Wall Street Journal, discussions about the lawsuit began in November during a dinner at Mar-A-Lago Estate in Florida. Zuckerberg reportedly agreed to settle the lawsuit before it escalated further.
Following his visit to Florida, Zuckerberg announced a loosening of platform restrictions and a focus on allowing more political content. He echoed Trump’s criticisms of online censorship, stating that it was time to “return to our roots.”
Source: www.theguardian.com
