Facebook’s independent Oversight Board on Wednesday announced it has ruled in favor of upholding the

Wednesday, May 05, 2021
GoLocalWorcester News Team

Former President Donald Trump

Facebook's independent Oversight Board on Wednesday announced it has ruled in favor of upholding the platform's suspension of former President Donald Trump's account.

"The Board found that the two posts by Mr. Trump on January 6 severely violated Facebook’s Community Standards and Instagram’s Community Guidelines," reported the board in their announcement. 

“'We love you. You’re very special' in the first post and 'great patriots' and 'remember this day forever' in the second post violated Facebook’s rules prohibiting praise or support of people engaged in violence," the board continued.

READ FULL STATEMENT HERE

"Why it matters," reports Axios. "The decision sets a global precedent for how Facebook, and potentially other social media companies, will treat political leaders around the world."

Facebook established and funded the Oversight Board to provide independent review when users appeal the company's content moderation decisions. Facebook has pledged to follow the board's recommendations with regard to specific cases and to give consideration to the board's broader policy recommendations.

Twitter has shown no indication that it plans to review or reverse its decision to ban Trump, nor have other online platforms that took action against him after January 6. 

Trump has said he is weighing options for starting his own social media enterprise, and on Tuesday he launched a new website.