YouTube has reached a settlement, agreeing to pay $24.5 million (£18.6 million) to resolve a lawsuit initiated by Donald Trump following the platform’s suspension of his account after the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The settlement with Alphabet, the parent company of YouTube and Google, follows similar agreements with social media platforms X/Twitter and Facebook, where Trump also received payments for account suspensions.
Trump had alleged political bias against YouTube and other tech companies, claiming they unfairly censored conservative voices in the aftermath of the 2021 Capitol riot.
At the time of the suspension, social media companies cited the risk of Trump inciting further violence in Washington D.C.
Under the terms of Monday’s settlement, $22 million will be allocated to the Trust for the National Mall, a non-profit organization aiming to raise $200 million for the construction of a new ballroom at the White House.
An additional $2.5 million will be distributed among other organizations and individuals who joined Trump’s lawsuit, including the American Conservative Union.
YouTube is the latest major platform to settle with the former president.
In January, Meta, Facebook’s parent company, agreed to a $25 million settlement, with $22 million designated for Trump’s presidential library.
A month later, X, the social media platform acquired by Trump ally Elon Musk in 2022, settled for a reported $10 million.
All of Mr. Trump’s social media accounts have since been reinstated.
These settlements coincide with a generally more conciliatory approach towards the former president from Silicon Valley. The CEOs of Alphabet, Meta, and X were all present in the front row at his inauguration, signaling a potential shift in relations between the Republican Party and the tech sector.
The social media giants have also taken steps to ease content moderation policies on their platforms, which Republicans had previously criticized as a violation of free speech.
Last week, YouTube announced plans to reinstate several accounts that had been banned for repeatedly disseminating false information about COVID-19 and the 2020 presidential election.
“YouTube values conservative voices on its platform and recognizes that these creators have extensive reach and play an important role in civic discourse,” the company stated in a letter to a Republican-controlled congressional committee, explaining its decision.
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