Close to its expected expected launch, former President Donald Trump’s new media venture, headlined by the ‘Truth Social’ free speech app, looks to provide Trump’s base the freedom to express themselves, without running afoul of Apple’s and Google’s app store policies.
Julia Love and Helen Coster for Reuters:
It will be a major test of whether Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) and other tech companies that describe themselves as champions of free speech can scale alongside the Silicon Valley gatekeepers that conservatives have accused of squelching free expression.
TMTG has pledged to deliver an “engaging and censorship-free experience” on its Truth Social app, appealing to a base that feels its views around such hot-button topics in American life as vaccines and the outcome of the 2020 presidential election have been scrubbed from mainstream tech platforms.
Yet Trump’s tech team must erect guard rails to ensure Truth Social does not get kicked out of the app stores run by Apple Inc and Alphabet Inc’s Google… Without these stores, there is no easy way for most smartphone users to download the app.
The risk of such “de-platforming” is a top priority for TMTG Chief Executive Devin Nunes, a former Republican congressman, as his team builds the app, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. Recognizing that the app will be a major target for hackers from day one, Nunes wants to have cyber talent at the “nation-state level,” one of the people said. Nunes has said publicly that the company’s goal is to launch its Truth Social app by the end of March.
TMTG’s mission of standing up to Big Tech is limited by its reliance on Google and Apple, which operate app stores that dominate the smartphone market. TMTG is working with Hive, a San Francisco-based company that does AI-based content moderation, to flag sexually explicit content, hate speech, bullying and violent content. That partnership is driven in part by TMTG’s desire for the Truth Social app to remain in the Apple App and Google Play stores, according to a person familiar with the venture.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple’s App Store currently hosts a preorder page for the TRUTH Social app which states, verbatim:
TRUTH Social is America’s “Big Tent” social media platform that encourages an open, free, and honest global conversation without discriminating against political ideology
Follow the TRUTH!
What exactly is TRUTH Social’s “Big Tent” approach?
Big Tent is a new way to describe “inclusivity” in America. 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 the world. Uncle Jim from Atlanta is a proud libertarian. Aunt Kellie from Texas is a staunch conservative. Your cousin John from California is a die-hard liberal. And guess what? They’re all together to have an amazing time and share their viewpoints of the world. Although we don’t always agree with each other, we welcome these varied opinions and welcome the conversation.
Let your voice be heard. Sign up, join the conversation, and share your unique opinion by posting a TRUTH, Re-TRUTH, photo, news story, or video link to communicate with your friends, customers, and the world. Stay informed about breaking news while staying directly connected with the people who influence you – don’t be shocked if they take your TRUTH viral!
Key Features
• Profile – Express your unique personality by setting up a profile, avatar, and background. Begin to track your personal connections through follower and following counts as well as history for your posts and likes.
• TRUTH Feed – Get the scoop on the latest thoughts and activities from the people, organizations, and news outlets that interest you. The TRUTH Feed contains posts from all those you follow brought to life with the help of thumbnail photos, links, and more.
• Search – TRUTH Social really starts to become interesting as you connect with others. Search for a voice that you find interesting and easily follow them right from the search list or view their profile first before deciding.
• Notifications – Stay engaged as you build a following. See who’s following you and who’s interacting with your TRUTH’s.
TRUTH Social is America’s “Big Tent” social media platform that encourages an open, free, and honest global conversation without discriminating against political ideology.
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[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers too numerous to mention individually for the heads up.]
Facebook’s number of daily users has plunged for the first time in Facebook history. This means people are tired of Fake News and abuse and especially tired of their political shenanigans. It could also be that people are waiting for TRUTH—the highly sophisticated platform that we look forward to opening in the not too distant future. Time to straighten out what is happening in our Country! — President Donald J. Trump, Feb. 4, 2020
Facebook and Big Tech are seeking to destroy the Freedom Convoy of Truckers. The Freedom Convoy is peacefully protesting the harsh policies of far left lunatic Justin Trudeau who has destroyed Canada with insane Covid mandates. Now, thankfully, the Freedom Convoy could be coming to DC with American Truckers who want to protest Biden’s ridiculous Covid policies. Facebook is canceling the accounts of Freedom Convoy USA, and GoFundMe is denying access to funds that belong to the Freedom Convoy. This is unacceptable and extremely dangerous in any country that values free expression. TruthSocial is announcing today that we are welcoming the Freedom Convoy with open arms to communicate freely on TruthSocial when we launch – coming very soon! TruthSocial will fight back against Big Tech so we can protect our rights to free expression. Also, on top of everything, it is big news that Facebook daily users went down for the first time ever, people are tired of biased social media like Twitter and Facebook, and it’s showing in their numbers! — President Donald J. Trump, Feb. 4, 2020
There’s no longer free expression in America, freedom of expression is long gone. every different opinions are censored like communist country, unfortunately !.
Yes, you are correct…we once embraced and even promoted what’s now described as freedom of speech. In fact, we once proudly distinguished ourselves with the motto, “Think Different,” which is partially delineated here:
“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes … the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo…”
But, being responsible to our State and moving ahead with newly acquired wisdom, we now think it’s best to promote acceptable thinking, so today we are changing the one vaulted motto to “Thinking Properly”. With commitment to your safety and health, we are partnered with Google, Twitter and Facebook for an enduring and promising Worldly future.
So apopros that the former President is talking about lies and fake news ….. NOT!
99% of all blatantly fake news come from conservatives like yourself and conservative news sources. (Note: I am not a Democrat so don’t go there.) Who do you think you’re kidding?
Quoting Trump under any circumstances is one sick, clueless, uninformed & moronic move. You just don’t get it or understand the evil you promote. Try supporting a conservative who hasn’t lied to him or herself all day long all in the quest for power for powers sake and wealth. It’s telling when the now autocratic Republican Party cast out the few remaining Republicans who still have a conscience and some semblance of honor and a belief in our democratic values.
Donald Trump doesn’t care about the American people. His focus is and has always been on himself. Any halfway intelligent human can see that. Sorry for your lack of mental clarity.
I also love how any political headline on MDN brings out the doofuses on the right like a moth to flame with their tired and sad BS. Give it a rest.
Information that conflicts with the leftist globalist establishment worldview, making leftist globalist establishment types uncomfortable, is not “misinformation.”
Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech.
― Benjamin Franklin
Speech that you hate is not “hate speech.”
If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.
― George Orwell
In the interest of FREE SPEECH, here’s the full Joe Rogan Experience, No.1757, with Dr. Robert Malone:
https://rumble.com/vrtdku-joe-rogan-jre-1757-robert-malone-covid.html
This really is insane. I expect deplatforming once the deranged nut job starts posting.
The amount of news hidden from you by the communist news is staggering.
The amount of lies told to you by the communist news is staggering.
The level of stupidity not to know this is staggering.
Libturds are too fscking stupid to know the damage they have done.
It is Trumptards are too damn stupid!
At best!
Disgusting that a treasonous monster is legitimized in any way, shape, or form. he belongs in jail- on Death Row. He is a mass murderer.
The Orange Imbecile and Truth are polar opposites.
This is really a Big Lie.
Well, try free speech in Communist China if you don’t believe how closed our freedom expression is in danger with the censorship of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube. Even Grandma Nancy Pelosi told American’s athletes refrain from expressing their opinions to not upsetting communist China in Beijing Olympic. Go figure.
You’re missing the point.
I’m fully in favour of free speech.
The ex-Narcissist-in-Chief might claim to be in favour of free speech, but it’s more like the freedom to lie and deceive in his case.
There’s a difference between free speech and horseshit. (One smells)
No, there’s really not. I call tell, you might like an authoritarian situ, skellum. You just need to find the place where you agree with the horse sht being served. Have fun with the moving target, as averages would say you’ll be scrambling 50% of the time.
True free speech allows for the truly disagreeable. This DOES mean, some of the freedom will bring sht…or what one thinks is sht.
Yer not very brite are ya, skellum? Damaged in birth, hard drugs, drunk?
Actually, you’re not very bright Vicky. No education? Illiterate?
“Trump’s truth-free social app . . .”
FIFY
Tell me, how fscking stupid to you have to be to vote for a corrupt, lying, racist dementia patient and a whore, and then claim Trump is “truth free”????????
Even wild animals are smart enough not to let the dumbest of the herd lead them. You libturds are literally dumber than a pack of wild dogs. Let that sink in.
Hal, how indescribably stupid do YOU have to be to not see that the corrupt, lying, racist, narcissistic megalomaniac that you voted for in 2016 is one of the biggest grifters in history?
You’ve been conned by Agent Orange and all his sycophantic acolytes.
Sadly, YOU are evidently too dumb see that…
Even if Biden were any of the things you claim, that would have nothing to do with Trump being an ignorant, pathological narcissist conman. P.S Your gleaming intelligence shines through with every use of “libturds”. I hope 7th grade is going well for you.
One can only hope and pray that Trump’s latest grift will crash and burn.
Thank you President Trump!
He hasn’t been president for over a year.
Welcome back to Planet Earth.
Since you’ve been gone, he’s no longer president, except maybe in your dreams.
I’m curious how long until it violates some guideline on the App Store?
Promoting hate speech? Explicit material? Lack of moderation?
So many reasons for Apple to remove it, but also something sideloading would completely prevent.
Trump for Apple CEO!
For the record, you don’t have to use Google’s App store on Android, there are other stores, and you can sideload, so they can’t censor you.
On iOS Apple can.
“TMTG is working with Hive,…to flag sexually explicit content, hate speech, bullying and violent content.”
That phrase indicates that GOP Nunes and Donald’s security guards will censor you if they want, you know, like FB, Instagram, and Twitter but for different bases so it’s still censorship meaning that it will not promote free speech, further meaning that its big tent approach will have many exit gates to push out non-conformists, rebels, insurgents, and anti-authoritarians. I may be one of the latter should I subscribe. Toe the line baby! That’s the normal connundrum of anti-gate keepers who become gate-keepers in word and deed but who pretend they are not.
The issue of bullying was introduced by Liberals but now a conservative is playing that hand which makes him — by his own conservative standard — into a snowflake.