'From the Desk of Donald J. Trump' blog permanently shut
What's the story
Not long after former US President Donald Trump hosted a blog on his website, the webpage "From the Desk of Donald J. Trump" has been shut down permanently. Trump's senior aide Jason Miller confirmed that the webpage will not make a comeback. He added that "it was just an auxiliary to the broader efforts we have and are working on." Here are more details.
Details
Trump's aide confirms that blog 'will not be returning'
CNBC reported that the page "From the Desk of Donald J. Trump" has been permanently removed from the ex-President's website less than a month after it went live. Miller told CNBC via an email that it "will not be returning." When the webpage launched, Miller tweeted that it's "a great resource" to find Trump's statements "but this is not a new social media platform."
Details
Big Tech social media banned Trump after Capitol Hill protests
Shortly after the pro-Trump Capitol Hill protests on January 6, then-President Trump's accounts on most Big Tech social media platforms including Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter were permanently banned. Twitter said that Trump's account was being taken down "due to the risk of further incitement of violence." Just last month, Trump's Facebook ban was upheld by a quasi-independent, Facebook-funded 20-member Oversight Board.
What next?
Blog's shutdown could be 'precursor' to Trump joining another platform
Since Trump left the presidential office on January 20, he has strongly hinted that he may run for the White House again in 2024, although he has made few public appearances since then, mostly on friendly media outlets. Interestingly, when asked whether the blog page's shutdown is a precursor to Trump joining another social media platform, Miller tweeted "Yes, actually, it is. Stay tuned!"
Speculation
Was blog a preemptive response to Facebook Oversight Board ruling?
While some may say that President Trump miscalculated the effort required to set up and run an independent blog, the webpage didn't live up to the "communications platform" hype that preceded its public debut. Engadget called the blog a preemptive response to the Oversight Board ruling regarding Trump's Facebook ban. It will be interesting to see which social media platform Trump joins.