Topline
Months after he was booted from virtually every large social network in the wake of the U.S. Capitol riot, former President Donald Trump unveiled plans Wednesday to launch his own social media company in early 2022.
Key Facts
The network — called “TRUTH Social” — expects to open for “invited guests” next month, ahead of a wider launch in the first quarter of next year, according to a statement tweeted by Liz Harrington, a former Republican National Committee staffer who has served as Trump’s personal spokesperson since June.
The social network will be operated by Trump Media & Technology Group, which plans to go public by merging with a Nasdaq-listed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) called Digital World Acquisition Corp., the statement said.
Digital World Acquisition Corp. was incorporated last year and announced an initial public offering earlier this year, with the intention of merging with “middle-market emerging growth technology-focused companies,” it said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing (SPACs, often called blank-check companies, are formed solely to raise money from investors and eventually buy an already-existing company).
The company framed itself as a “rival to the liberal media consortium,” but the press release also mentioned its founder’s high-profile exile from social media earlier this year, with Trump complaining in a quote that “your favorite American President has been silenced.”
Key Background
Trump has feuded with tech companies for years, often accusing them of harboring bias against conservatives. His enmity for social media sharpened in January, when he was indefinitely suspended from posting on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube after a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol amid his months-long gambit to overturn his election loss. Since then, Trump has looked for other ways to stay in touch with his supporters and keep his political relevance alive ahead of another possible presidential run in 2024. He regularly sits for interviews on conservative networks like Fox News, he still holds in-person rallies, he comments on current events via a press email list and he started a blog in May called “From The Desk Of Donald J. Trump,” though he shut down that site weeks after its launch.
Tangent
TRUTH Social appears to be the latest enterprise aimed at conservatives frustrated with mainstream social networks’ moderation practices. A social network called Parler has attracted some conservative users, though it was booted from Apple’s App Store and Amazon Web Services earlier this year amid allegations it failed to moderate extremist content (it returned to the App Store in May after changing its moderation practices for iPhone users). Another site called Gab has also courted users by casting itself as a “free speech” social network, though critics have accused Gab of insufficiently controlling violent content ahead of the Capitol riot, a charge the social network’s founder has denied. And Trump’s former spokesperson Jason Miller launched a social media platform called GETTR earlier this year.
Surprising Fact
Trump sued executives at Facebook, Twitter and Google over the summer, claiming his banishment from social media violated the First Amendment. Many legal experts think his lawsuits are long-shots, largely because the First Amendment applies to the government, not private companies.
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October 21, 2021 at 09:26AM
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Trump Plans To Launch New Social Network 'TRUTH Social' Next Year - Forbes
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