Snap Inc. said today that President Trump’s account will no longer be featured with other high-profile and professional accounts on its Snapchat Discover page.
“We will not amplify voices who incite racial violence and injustice by giving them free promotion on Discover,” a spokesperson told Fast Company. “Racial violence and injustice have no place in our society and we stand together with all who seek peace, love, equality, and justice in America.”
The president’s account will remain fully visible and searchable, and it will still be available to subscribers. The Discover platform features public figures, content from media organizations, and curated Snapchat profiles. Snap said it made the decision this past weekend.
Tech companies have long been called out for not doing more to curb misinformation and violent content, and major platforms such as Twitter and Facebook have differing policies when it comes to objectionable content from world leaders.
Last week Twitter hid a tweet in which Trump said that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts.” The tweet was still viewable, but it was placed behind a message explaining that it violated Twitter’s policy against glorifying violence. Facebook, in contrast, has allowed Trump’s aggressive posts to go unmarked, leading to sharp criticism—including an employee walkout and several high-profile resignations.
Update Wednesday, 3:10 p.m. ET
Following Snapchat’s move, the Trump campaign released a statement accusing the platform of trying to “rig the election” and “actively engaging in voter suppression.” The statement refers to Snap CEO Evan Spiegel as a “radical,” who would “rather promote left riot videos” than share “positive words of unity, justice, and law order from our President.”
Trump calls @evanspiegel radical, says Snapchat is trying to rig the election. Well, this is the response we expected. pic.twitter.com/0814TQUpao
— Sarah Frier (@sarahfrier) June 3, 2020
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