Unlike other social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Twitch and YouTube, Donald Trump does not have a TikTok account for the service to suspend, but it is laying a ban down on certain content related to Wednesday’s US Capitol violence in Washington D.C which even led to the death of a US Capitol police officer, one woman who was fatally shot by police ID’d as Ashli Babbitt an Air Force Veteran and three other people died of apparent medical emergencies. Thousands of protesters supporting US President Donald Trump breached the security of the US capitol late on Wednesday night as Congress was certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, sending legislators and staffers into hiding.
The President condemned the violence, saying rioters had defiled the seat of American democracy and must be held accountable. This came a day later when Trump had told his supporters, “We love you. You’re very special,” as he urged them to go home after they broke into the Capitol.
Thousands of protesters supporting US President Donald Trump breached the security of the US capitol late on Wednesday night as Congress was certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. The protesters demanded the result to be overturned as they ransacked the Capitol building which houses both House of Representatives and the Senate.
As first reported by TechCrunch, TikTok’s misinformation content policy will, like the other platforms, block posts of Donald Trump’s video where he called the rioters “very special” because they include claims of election fraud. Counter speech videos with factual information are still allowed.
Meanwhile, videos from news organizations reporting on the incident will be allowed, while hashtags used by the rioters are being redirected to reduce discoverability. In a statement, a spokesperson said “Hateful behavior and violence have no place on TikTok. Content or accounts that seek to incite, glorify, or promote violence violate our Community Guidelines and will be removed.”
The president told reporters he would ban TikTok in July. A deadline for its sale or shut down passed in December and the service continues to operate.
