Trump had sued, arguing that the popular social media platform unlawfully silenced conservatives after the events of Jan. 6, 2021.
YouTube has agreed to pay $24.5 million to President Donald Trump to settle a lawsuit over suspending his account in 2021, according to documents filed in court on Sept. 29.
The social media website, owned by Alphabet, put Trump’s YouTube account on hold following the security breach at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Trump also sued Alphabet-owned Google, Facebook parent Meta, and X, then known as Twitter, arguing that they illegally suppressed conservative viewpoints. Meta and X agreed earlier this year to settle the respective lawsuits against them.
Trump had announced the lawsuits in July 2021 after the three social media platforms suspended his accounts six months before because of his comments related to the Jan. 6 incident.
Trump said at the time that he was taking legal action to protect the First Amendment-based right to free speech, claiming that his rights were denied when the three platforms banned him.
Trump at the time described the lawsuits as a “very beautiful development” to safeguard free speech in the United States. The social media companies’ alleged control over political discourse is “destroying the country,” he said.
The companies said in January 2021 that they had banned Trump over his allegations that the November 2020 election was stolen, which they alleged contributed to Jan. 6-related violence. Twitter said Trump’s ban would be permanent, Facebook imposed a two-year ban, and YouTube said his suspension would continue until it determined that “the risk of violence has decreased.”
Trump argued that social media companies have “ceased to be private” companies and cited the Section 230 protection shield that such firms employ to protect themselves from liability.
Some Republicans have argued that the federal rule has allowed big tech firms to censor their political opponents. Others have gone further, arguing that social media giants should be regulated as utilities.
“This lawsuit is just the beginning,” Trump said at the time.
