YouTube to pay $24.5 mn to Donald Trump in channel suspension settlement

YouTube has reportedly agreed to pay $24.5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Donald Trump in 2021 over the suspension of his channel following the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The settlement brings an end to a case that accused the Google-owned platform of wrongly silencing Trump and exerting excessive control over online speech.

The platform first suspended Trump’s channel on January 12, 2021, after he defended his speech to supporters ahead of the Capitol riot as ‘totally appropriate.’ The suspension was extended indefinitely before the platform reinstated the channel in March 2023, citing the importance of voter access to major candidates.

Trump’s channel returned with his post declaring, ‘I’M BACK!’ accompanied by a short video from a campaign rally.

Trump had sued YouTube and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, claiming the company held an unprecedented concentration of power and interfered with public discourse. The video platform said the suspension was due to violations of its policies against inciting violence. The settlement led to the dismissal of the case. Google did not immediately comment, per the report.

The agreement follows similar settlements between Trump and other tech firms. In January, Meta agreed to pay $25 million, while X (formerly Twitter) settled for $10 million in February. According to court filings, $22 million of the platform’s settlement will go toward projects including preservation of the National Mall and construction of a new White House ballroom.

The lawsuits were initially dismissed or put on hold, but were revived after Trump returned to the White House.