Meta Platforms has agreed to pay $25 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Donald Trump over his account suspensions following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. Trump had sued Meta, Twitter (now X), and Google in July 2021, claiming they unlawfully silenced conservative voices.
Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts were suspended after he spread false claims of election fraud, fueling the Capitol riot. Of the settlement, $22 million will go to a fund for Trump’s presidential library, with the remainder covering legal fees and other plaintiffs.
Meta filed the settlement notice in a San Francisco federal court. Talks had stalled since late 2023 but resumed after Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg dined with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in November, per the Wall Street Journal.
Seeking to improve relations, Meta donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund in December. In January, the company ended its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, scrapped its U.S. fact-checking initiative, and eased restrictions on discussions about immigration and gender identity.
Meta also appointed Republican strategist Joel Kaplan as chief global affairs officer and UFC CEO Dana White, a Trump ally, to its board.
Also read: Trump Urges SpaceX to Retrieve NASA Astronauts from ISS
