Facebook, Twitter move to suppress Trump message about trying to vote twice
Social media sites say the comments violate their policies
Facebook and Twitter moved to limit President Trump's message encouraging people to vote in person as well as by mail, saying the message violates their policies.
Facebook said it would remove videos of Trump's remarks if the users posting them do not provide context or if they appear to support the message. A spokesperson told Politico that the video “violates our policies prohibiting voter fraud” and that the content will be taken down “unless it is shared to correct the record.”
FACEBOOK TO BLOCK NEW POLITICAL ADS IN WEEK BEFORE ELECTION
FOX Business reached out to Facebook for further comment, but the social media company did not immediately respond.
In the video, Trump said that voting both ways would not be a problem if there are proper safeguards in place to prevent fraud. He claimed that if the system is working properly and a person’s mail-in vote had been processed already, poll workers would be aware of this when a voter tried to vote in person.
PAYPAL JOINS FACEBOOK, TWITTER IN OUSTING ACCOUNTS CONNECTED TO RUSSIAN NETWORK
"And if their system is as good as they say it is, then obviously they won't be able to vote," Trump said. "If it isn't tabulated, they will be able to vote."
Trump reiterated the message Thursday in a Twitter thread, but Twitter added "public interest notice" on two of the tweets, limiting how widely they may be shared.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FB | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
| TWTR | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
Twitter users may "quote tweet" the messages, but not like, reply or retweet them, the company said.
"To protect people on Twitter, we err on the side of limiting the circulation of Tweets which advise people to take actions which could be illegal in the context of voting or result in the invalidation of their votes," Twitter wrote.
Photo: Getty images - iStock
"Per our policies, this Tweet will remain on the service given its relevance to ongoing public conversation," the company said. "Engagements with the Tweet will be limited."
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnancy said Thursday that Trump "does not condone unlawful voting," and that Trump was encouraging people to verify that their mail-in ballot had been counted.
READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS BY CLICKING HERE
Also Thursday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a slate of new policies to fight voter misinformation, including cutting off new political ads a week before Election Day and limiting forwarding on Facebook's Messenger app.
Advertisers will still be able to run political ads in the week before the election, but Facebook will not greenlight new political or issue ads in the week leading up to Election Day.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE