Video streaming platform YouTube, on Wednesday, extended the US President Donald Trump’s ban by a week. This was done in light of concerns about the ongoing potential for violence on the inauguration ceremony of President-Elect Joe Biden.
YouTube barred Trump from uploading videos or live-streaming to his channel for at least a week. Previously, on January 12, the Alphabet Inc owned streaming platform banned him for violating its policy against inciting violence after his supporters stormed the US Capitol as Congress began to certify Biden’s victory on January 6.
In a video uploaded earlier on Tuesday to the White House’s YouTube channel, Trump denounced the “shutting down” of debate. “In America, we don’t insist on absolute conformity or enforce rigid orthodoxies and punitive speech codes, we just don’t do that,” he said.
Activists have threatened to organise a boycott of YouTube advertising if it does not ban Trump permanently, as Twitter Inc has done. Facebook has blocked his accounts indefinitely.
Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai told Reuters last week that YouTube is treating Trump the same as any other user and will not terminate his account unless he violates the service’s policies three times in 90 days.
Trump is scheduled to vacate the White House on Wednesday as President-elect Joe Biden takes office.
