YouTube parent company Alphabet Inc. said Friday it had lifted restrictions on former President Trump’s channel.
The move follows a two-year suspension against Trump by the video sharing site following the deadly January 6, 2021 insurrection upon the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overturn the 2020 election.
The YouTube channel’s restoration comes after other social media platforms also restored Trump’s access after January 6-related suspensions.
In November Elon Musk, the then-new owner of Twitter, revoked a permanent ban against Trump that the site levied two days after January 6 “due to risk of further incitement of violence.” Trump has reportedly been planning his return to that platform, attempting to work out an end to his exclusivity deal with his own social media site, Truth Social.
In late January Meta Platforms Inc. said that it was restoring Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts.
Those tech platforms, along with with YouTube, will give Trump access to his combined 146 million followers as he runs for reelection in 2024.
“We carefully evaluated the continued risk of real-world violence, while balancing the chance for voters to hear equally from major national candidates in the run up to an election,” YouTube said in a tweet, referring to restoring Trump’s channel.
