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Facebook, Twitter, Google Face Calls to Ban Trump Accounts

  • Tech companies on defensive for providing his digital pulpit
  • Social media impose first-ever ban on Trump’s online megaphone
Demostrators mob the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6. following encouragement from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Demostrators mob the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6. following encouragement from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Photographer: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

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Facebook Inc., Twitter Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google are facing mounting pressure from lawmakers, activists and civil rights groups to enact tougher policies and more forcefully purge misleading content and accounts -- including the ones held by President Donald Trump -- after a mob of pro-Trump protesters stormed the U.S. Capitol.

Coinciding with the imminent shift of power in Washington to the Democrats, social networks have taken their most aggressive steps yet to muzzle Trump over the last two days. But civil rights groups and lawmakers say the internet companies allowed misleading content to proliferate for too long, resulting in dangerous -- and deadly -- consequences.