YouTube restores Donald Trump’s channel 2 years after suspension
YouTube said Friday it would restore an account belonging to former President Donald Trump, some two years after it was suspended amid the fallout from the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
“As of today, the channel of Donald J. Trump You are no longer restricted and can upload new content”YouTube said in a tweet on Friday.
With the restrictions lifted, Trump will also return to be able to buy ads on the video sharing platform.
“We carefully assess the continued risk of violence in the real world, while balancing the chance that major national candidates will be heard equally by voters in the run-up to an election,” YouTube said.
However, the platform made it clear that Trump’s channel will continue to be subject to its policies, “just like any other channel on YouTube.”
Breaking news
How does it happen
Get updates on the coronavirus pandemic and other news as it happens with our free breaking news email alerts.
YouTube suspended Trump’s account days after the January 6 insurrection, citing “the risk of further incitement to violence.” A month later, the company promised that it would lift the restrictions when it determined that “the risk of violence has decreased.”
Trump’s account, which has more than 2.6 million subscribers, has since been blocked from uploading new videos and live streams. Comments on older content have also been disabled.
On Friday, several users began posting “welcome” messages to still-existing clips of Trump.
The announcement follows similar actions by other social media outlets.
In January, Meta said he would reinstate Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts. And Elon Musk, who bought Twitter in October, welcomed the former president after he shared a poll asking his followers whether or not Trump’s Twitter account should be restored.
Some 52% voted for his return, while 48% preferred that he remain blocked on the social media site.
Trump has yet to post to either platform, instead turning to his own outlet, Truth Social. He shared a series of videos on Friday morning, including several claiming the 2020 presidential election was stolen and he should have been declared the rightful winner.