Meta gives special exclusive interview to Fox News after the company announced they will reinstate Donald Trump
Nick Clegg: “He has got to play by the rules”
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From the January 25, 2023, edition of Fox News' Special Report with Bret Baier
BRET BAIER (HOST): You are ending the suspension of former President Trump on Facebook and Instagram. Why are you doing that now and explain what's behind it?
NICK CLEGG (GUEST): He was suspended for two years from using Facebook and Instagram and that two-year clock expires now this month. And so we're confirming that if he wants to, in the coming weeks he can use Facebook and Instagram again. I mean, of course, there are guardrails. There are rules. He has got to play by the rules and we are announcing some additional ones today to encourage him to stick to the rules that exist when people use Instagram and Facebook. At the end of the day we believe the American people should hear from, including on our apps and services, from those who want to lead them. He's a former president of this country, vying to be a candidate for the next presidential elections and we don't really want to, all other things be equal, stand in the way. So we think it's right to let the two-year suspension now expire if -- I mean, it's up to him and his team if he wants to use Facebook and Instagram, he's he now free to do so.
BAIER: We've learned a lot about what the former president, then president, did on January 6th and did not do. I don't want to go too far down this road but on Facebook he posted on that day, "I'm asking everyone at the U.S. Capitol remain peaceful. No violence! Remember, WE are the party of Law & Order - respect the Law and our great men and women in Blue. Thank you!" He posted, "We have to have peace. Go home!" You look at other people who maybe still didn't get suspended on Facebook or Instagram who have done or said other things and I'm just trying to get a sense of where the community standards are for political speech and what you took from that day on that decision.
CLEGG: I mean, like you, I don't think it helps to go through each and every single post that appeared that day. There are other posts which had much more, at best, ambivalent message of support for those who did, you know, indulge in exceptional violence at the center of American democracy on that day. But, where we draw the line is -- As a general principle, we're a private company. We're a private tech company. We're not a political entity. We don't make try and make decisions that help or hinder one side or the other. We believe in free and open debate, particularly in the world's most powerful democracy, the United States. We're trying to strike the right balance between free expression, free and open political debate, while also at the same time making sure that for all the users who use Facebook and Instagram it's an enjoyable experience.