Twitter CEO: Ban bigger than Trump, beyond inauguration

ANKARA

In a video leaked Friday, Twitter’s CEO said outgoing President Donald Trump's ban is “bigger” than just a single account, and it will go beyond President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration next week.

"We know we are focused on one account [@realDonaldTrump] right now. But this is gonna be much bigger than just one account," Jack Dorsey said in a video conference in footage obtained by far-right US activist group Project Veritas.

"And it's going to go on for much longer than just this day, this week, and the next few weeks and go on beyond the inauguration," he added.

Trump's Twitter account was suspended for a 12-hour period in the aftermath of the deadly US Capitol riots on Jan. 6, before a permanent ban took place last Friday.

On Wednesday, Dorsey described the ban decision as "a failure" to promote healthy conversations.

Dorsey, in the leaked video, said the current focus is on Trump's account and how it ties to real world violence, but added: "Also, we need to think much longer term around how these dynamics play out over time. I don't believe this is going away anytime soon."

"The US is extremely divided. Our platform is showing that every single day, and our role is to protect the integrity of that conversation, and do what we can to make sure that no one is being harmed based off that," he explained.

Although Dorsey said Wednesday Trump's ban was taken "based on threats to physical safety both on and off Twitter," he drew criticism from some US lawmakers and world leaders.

Trump and Republicans have long claimed that social media platforms, like Twitter and Facebook, are prioritizing liberal and Democratic content and views, while suppressing conservative voices.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the Twitter ban "problematic," and Mexican President Andres Lopez Manuel Obrador said a private corporation should not be allowed to decide "who has the possibility of communication and who has not."