Donald Trump's Snapchat account will be gone for good.
On Wednesday, the social media platform announced it will permanently ban the president beginning on Jan. 20, the day President-elect Joe Biden will officially take office. The news comes one week after Snapchat locked Trump's account "indefinitely," citing concerns over his rhetoric that could potentially incite another riot.
"Last week we announced an indefinite suspension of President Trump's Snapchat (SNAP) account, and have been assessing what long term action is in the best interest of our Snapchat community," a Snapchat spokesperson said in a statement to CNN. "In the interest of public safety, and based on his attempts to spread misinformation, hate speech, and incite violence, which are clear violations of our guidelines, we have made the decision to permanently terminate his account."
A number of social media platforms have also restricted Trump's access in wake of the insurrection on the U.S. Capitol last week. Twitter was the first to announce Trump's permanent suspension, claiming he was no longer shielded by its policy for world leaders. Many people criticized the move as a form of censorship and an attack on free speech, while others questioned why Twitter waited until the end of Trump's presidency to ban him from the platform.
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey defended the decision in a series of tweets Wednesday night, just hours after the House voted to impeach Trump for inciting a violent insurrection against the U.S. government. He acknowledged that Twitter had failed to "promote a healthy conversation" and said the company must "look critically at inconsistencies of our policy and enforcement."
"It’s important that we acknowledge this is a time of great uncertainty and struggle for so many around the world," Dorsey wrote. "Our goal in this moment is to disarm as much as we can, and ensure we are all building towards a greater common understanding, and a more peaceful existence on earth ... I believe the internet and global public conversation is our best and most relevant method of achieving this. I also recognize it does not feel that way today. Everything we learn in this moment will better our effort, and push us to be what we are: one humanity working together."
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