For some months now there has been a big social media story seemingly brewing.
Kicked off the likes of Twitter and Facebook following his controversial tenure as US president, Donald Trump was set to launch his very own social media platform to bypass these bans.
“I do think that we’re going to see President Trump returning to social media in probably about two or three months here, with his own platform,” Trump senior adviser Jason Miller told Fox News earlier this year.
Miller went on to say that the new social media platform was going to be “the hottest ticket in social media” and that “tens of millions of people” would sign up.
With the recent emergence of Parler and its popularity among Trump fans, there seemingly was a market for Trump to tap into with a customised social media network.
But now Trump’s social media platform is here – and it’s anything but a social media platform.
‘From The Desk Of Donald J. Trump’ is now live.
The site features a bit of Trump branding (including a link to his merch shop) and a stream of Trump’s thoughts and opinions with the option for users to share these to Facebook and Twitter.
But as the internet has been quick to point out, what Trump has essentially created here is a blog.
Although users should reportedly be able to ‘like’ Trump’s posts, this feature is not currently working, nor is the Twitter sharing function.
There is also a video of Trump describing it as “a place to speak freely and safely, straight from the desk of Donald J. Trump.”
Users on Twitter have been quick to point out that the lack of working interaction features mean the page is anything but a social media platform.
If you’re gonna launch a competing social media network, do it properly. Don’t just launch a shitty blog.
Or just join Telegram or Gab and ween boomers off of their impenetrable addiction to Facebook.https://t.co/yuu0ruP9Cz
— Paul Joseph Watson (@PrisonPlanet) May 4, 2021
It took him that long to set up a blog?
— @[email protected] (@hkperrin) May 4, 2021
https://twitter.com/stretchdogg/status/1389691853922992131
There will reportedly be improvements made to the website which will allow users to communicate directly with the former President.
Trump may soon be relying on his new site to be his main form of communication, with Facebook’s Oversight Board set to decide whether or not the former President should be allowed back on the platform on Wednesday.
