Snapchat CEO Defends Decision to Remove Trump from the Discover Page

Snapchat is one of the biggest social media companies and social networks in the world. And last Wednesday they publicly announced that they will no longer be promoting Donald Trump’s content on their platform. 

The app will not be deleting the President’s account but explained in an interview with the New York Times that his comments off of the app had the potential to incite violence. The account has not been deactivated and is still active, but in the move by the company, President Trump will not be promoted on the Discover page. 

This decision comes as a much more firm stance than any of the other stances taken by social media companies has been taking recently after a string of comments by the president. Twitter has deemed several of his tweets inaccurate or have had tones that could incite violence or content threats. Snapchat has taken the toughest stance thus far. In contrast, Facebook hasn’t made any comment on President Trump’s behavior and instead have said that the posts will remain up in the name of free speech and because they are “newsworthy”. 

This week Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel said in an interview with CNBC and the Daily Dot “There seems to be some confusion about the First Amendment and who that applies to. The First Amendment is very specific: it’s actually designed to protect individuals and private businesses from the government.” After Spiegel and Snapchat received backlash from the president. 

In another interview “We will not amplify voices who incite racial violence and injustice by giving them free promotion on Discover,” Rachel Racusen, a Snapchat spokesperson, said.

Especially in the midst of the nationwide protests for racial equality in the United States, President Trump has not been shy about tweeting his feelings about the protests. These tweets are needless to say not positive and are often inciting violence against protestors. Ultimately it is Snapchat’s decision as to what to do from here on out. 

But what do you think about all of this? Do you think more companies should be taking steps like Snapchat to try and decrease the number of negative comments that could incite violence? Sound off below!!