Q&A: Will Twitter, Facebook crack down on Trump?
Associated PressOAKLAND, Calif. — For the past four years, President Donald Trump has enjoyed the special status of a world leader on Twitter and Facebook, even as he used his perch atop the social media pyramid to peddle misinformation and hurl abuse at his critics. While regular users could have faced being suspended or even booted from the platforms, Trump’s misleading proclamations and personal attacks have thus far only garnered warning labels. Twitter has labeled hundreds of thousands of posts since late October under its “civic integrity” policy, flagging disputed or potentially misleading posts about the election, the voting process and the results. Many of Facebook’s labels, which during the election it placed on statements and images about voting posted by all of its U.S. users, could be removed just by clicking on an “X.” Both companies changed how they labeled Trump’s claims of victory after multiple news organizations, including The Associated Press, called the race for Biden. If the platforms continue to allow Trump and others to spread misinformation with no repercussions other than generic labels, even labeling every single post won’t do much.