Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) held at the Hyatt Regency in Orlando, Florida on February 28, 2021.
Joe Raedle | Getty Images
Facebook removed a video starring former President Donald Trump, a company spokesperson confirmed to NBC News on Wednesday, citing the former president’s permanent suspension from the platform.
The removal tests the willingness of Facebook to interpret its suspension that followed the January 6th uprising in the U.S. Capitol. The video with Trump was posted by his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, who was interviewing the former president. Lara Trump had teased the interview on an Instagram photo of sitting on Tuesday.
An email Lara Trump posted on her Instagram account later Tuesday shows a message warning her team before uploading the video. The email reminded her that “Content posted on Facebook and Instagram in the voice of President Trump is not currently allowed on our platform (including new posts featuring President Trump speaking) and will be removed if it is published, which puts additional restrictions on accounts they have published. “A Facebook source confirmed the email’s accuracy.
A second email from Lara Trump said Facebook removed the video after uploading it to her page.
“In accordance with the block we have placed on Donald Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts, further content posted in Donald Trump’s voice will be removed and will result in additional restrictions on the accounts,” said the E -Mail.
The former president was initially banned from Facebook the day after the deadly uprising fueled by his supporters after his false claims of election fraud. Facebook had said the ban was permanent and would at least last for the rest of his term in office.
The company has since maintained the ban, saying it is referring the matter to its independent regulator to recommend whether the suspension should be lifted. Twitter has stated that Trump’s ban is permanent.
A spokesman for former President Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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