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Donald Trump’s own social media app- The truth Social

United State President Donald Trump has launched his first-ever app called “Truth Social”. The name itself explains that this is the social media app, which one can download from Apple’s App Store. In 2021 January, the launch of this app marks his return to the social media world as he was banned from various platforms such as Facebook or Twitter. He was accused for posting messages that used to incite violence.

In 2021 October, the launch of this social media app was first announced and it’s now finally available for the download. Nevertheless, it isn’t available for the Android users. The iOS users that have installed the app on their phones have reported some issues. Some were not able to register for an account and users are added to a waitlist with a message, which said “Due to massive demand, they have placed you on the waitlist.

What is Truth Social app? What are the key features? Data collection?

Truth Social on App Store said that this is a social media platform that is free from the political discrimination. Anyone can sign up and share of their opinion on a news story, photo and video link. In this platform, you will get “the latest thoughts and activities from the people, organizations and news outlets that interest you. On your feed, you will see the posts from those who you follow. They will be able to see how many followers you have and the following list. The app will also show you the history for your posts and likes. These are visible in the profile section, as per the description on the App Store.

You will be able to search for the other personalities and regular users and follow them. The app even supports the Notification feature, you will get notified when there is an update and someone has interacted with your post. You will also be able to personally send messages to anyone on this platform. There is also a feature to retweet, like or comment in a post, as per the screenshots shared on the App Store. It supports Dark mode as well as Hashtags. All this sounds pretty similar to Twitter. The App Privacy section on Apple’s App Store shows that this social media app collects Contact info, User content and Browsing history in terms of data collection. The app is also available for those devices that are running iOS 13 and later. This is a free-to-use app.

Why is Trump launching his own social media platform?

After his social media handles were suspended, Trump essentially declared war on Big Tech. In a statement released in previous year, the president announced that he was launching his own social media platform to stand up to the “tyranny of the tech giants” who have used of their unilateral power to silence dissenting voices in America.

Developed by the Trump Media and Technology Group, the platform perform it seeks to promote open and free conversation. The latest platform comes at a time when the right-wing social media landscape in the US is rapidly expanding, with Twitter alternatives like Parler, Gab and GETTR quickly gaining prominence.

Like with Parler, Trump’s new platform is likely to attract many of his supporters, several of whom are convinced that Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 US elections was the result of electoral fraud. Trump has also been vocal about his desire to run for president once again in 2024. If that happens, Truth Social is likely to be his platform of choice to communicate with his supporters.

During his tenure as president, Trump racked up to 20,000 tweets and using the microblogging site as a way of bypassing traditional media.

How does Truth Social work?

The app’s developers have said that the platform will follow a ‘Big Tent’ approach. Its description on Apple’s App Store reads: “Think of a giant outdoor event tent at your best friend’s wedding. Who’s there? The combination of multiple families from all over the United States and in the world. The posts, which will be known as ‘truths’, look almost exactly like tweets, with buttons to reply, share and like right underneath.

The app allows users to follow other people and trending topics. According to screenshots of Trump’s account on the social media site, he joined on February 10 and already has about 175 followers. The Beta version of the app was released in December previous year, with some people granted early access. The app was earlier meant to be released on February 21, the US Presidents Day, but its launch was later pushed to March, TIME reported. At the moment, the app isn’t available on the App Store in India. It’s still unclear whether it will be limited to US residents only.

Initial hurdles

In previous year, after Trump announced the platform several trolls signed up for the beta version and were able to set up fake Trump accounts that they used to share memes. The platform has also had to tackle some licensing issues. Powered by an open-source software called Mastodon, the platform violated the software’s policy by failing to give it credit anywhere on the site, Mashable reported. The issue was later resolved.

Why was Trump banned from Twitter and Facebook in the first place?

A day after a mob of angry and armed Trump supporters stormed Capitol Hill in Washington DC on 6^th of January in last year, Facebook announced that it will block Trump from all its platforms. Soon after, Twitter followed suit. In a Facebook post, Mark Zuckerberg, the tech giant’s CEO, had said that believe the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during in this period are simply too great. Therefore, we are extending the block we have placed on his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely.