Twitter shares fell after the site banned President Donald Trump for his dangerous astronomy when a group of MAGA fans stormed the U.S. Capitol at will.
The social media giant suspended Trump’s account for 12 hours Wednesday night after Washington, DC, became embroiled in a riot while hundreds of the president’s supporters staged side protests outside and inside the halls of Congress.
Twitter share price slipped 1.8 percent by closing bell Thursday – a fall that is thought to be related to what he did against Trump.
At the same time Facebook – which went far beyond Twitter with an ‘indefinite’ ban on Trump’s account – saw its shares rise two per cent on Thursday, reflecting a wider rise among high-tech stocks.
The difference between the companies ’performances seems to have come from the fact that Trump’s presence on Twitter has a much greater impact on his bottom line, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The 89 million followers on Trump’s main Twitter account, @realDonaldTrump, represented nearly 48 percent of the company’s total base of monetizable daily active users at the end of the third quarter.
Facebook has a much larger base of 1.8 billion daily active users, and less than two percent of them – 35 million – are Trump followers.
Twitter shares fell after the site banned President Donald Trump for his dangerous astronomy when a group of MAGA fans stormed the U.S. Capitol at will. The 89 million followers on Trump’s main Twitter account, @realDonaldTrump, represent nearly 48 percent of the company’s total base of monetizable daily active users
The price of Twitter share fell 1.8 percent by closing the bell Thursday
Facebook – which went far beyond Twitter with an ‘indefinite’ ban on Trump’s account – saw its shares rise two percent Thursday, reflecting a broader rise among high-tech stocks
Washington was plundered as hundreds of presidential supporters staged riots outside and inside Congress halls
The loss of Twitter stock on Thursday reflects broader concerns for investors about what will be the platform in the world of Vice President Trump, the WSJ said.
It comes as the site faces another uncertainty over participation, which came to a head in 2020 amidst a volatile political climate and the coronavirus pandemic.
Now that COVID-19 vaccinations have arrived and a more moderate president takes office, Twitter is expected to see a drop in traffic, closer to where it was early last year.
Twitter has long had a troubled relationship with Trump, who has repeatedly ruled on misinformation and harmful content (file image)
Twitter has long had a troubled relationship with Trump, who has repeatedly ruled on misinformation and harmful content.
The company avoided a total ban on Trump’s violence on Wednesday, fearing the backlash would inevitably continue to silence one of the world’s most influential people.
The straw that broke the back of the camel was a video sent by the president telling his supporters inside the capitol that he loves them and understands their problems – with a plea for ‘ to go home ‘to throw in.
In the video Trump repeated his baseless allegations that the primary election had been stolen from him. Over the past few months Twitter has repeatedly surfaced Trump with these claims.
Trump was believed to be livid about being blocked from Twitter, and complained to supporters that he could not send messages to his followers, sources told the Daily Beast.
He said his ban was an example of big tech companies trying to keep it quiet.
His account had been suspended for about 12 hours before being reinstated on Thursday.
Trump posted a video (above) on Twitter Thursday night after his account was reset
Facebook, however, stood firm on banning the president’s Facebook and Instagram account, which would remain in place at least until the end of his term on January 20th.
In a shocking blog post, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg accused Trump of using the platform ‘to incite violent terrorism against a democratically elected government’.
Zuckerberg said the president used his Facebook page ‘to condone rather than criticize the actions of his supporters at the Capitol building’ and that allowing him to post freely in the last 13 days of his term.
The horrific events of the past 24 hours clearly show that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time to undermine the peaceful and legal movement of power to the individual. -his chosen center, Joe Biden, ‘he wrote.
Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg accused Trump of using the platform ‘to incite violent terrorism against a democratically elected government’ on Thursday
In the last 13 days in his leadership, Trump will not be able to communicate with the rest of his more than 35.2 million followers on Facebook
‘His decision to use his platform to quarrel rather than criticize the actions of his supporters at the Capitol building has alarmed people in the US and around the world. .
‘We removed those statements yesterday because we thought their effect – and perhaps their intention – was to incite more violence.
Less than two percent of Facebook’s daily active users – 35 million – follow Trump (file photo)
‘Following the confirmation of the election results by Congress, the priority for the whole country must now be to ensure that the remaining 13 days and the days after their establishment pass peacefully and in accordance with established democratic norms.
‘Over the past several years, we have allowed President Trump to use our platform in accordance with our own rules, sometimes removing content or labeling his post when which they break our policies.
‘We did this because we believe that the public has a right to the widest possible access to a political speech, even a controversial speech.
‘But the current context is now completely different, involving the use of our platform to incite violent revolt against a democratically elected government . ‘
Zuckerberg observed: ‘We think the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this time are just too great.
‘So we are extending the block we put on his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transfer of power is complete. ‘
