Trump permanently shuts down his social media site after a month; may join another
Washington, Jun 3: Donald Trump has permanently closed his blog, a webpage where the former US president shared his fiery speeches and statements after being banned by social media giants, including Facebook and Twitter.
The page titled From the Desk of Donald J. Trump has been removed from Trump's website after going live less than a month earlier, his spokesperson Jason Miller told CNBC news on Wednesday.
It was just auxiliary to the broader efforts we have and are working on, Miller said, adding that the webpage will not be returning .
Hoping to have more information on the broader efforts soon, but I do not have a precise awareness of timing, Miller said.
Asked later whether the move was a precursor to 74-year-old Trump, a Republican, joining another social media platform, Miller said: Yes, actually, it is. Stay tuned!
The former president, who left office on January 20 indicating to run for the White House again in 2024, has long accused social media giants, including Facebook and Twitter where he had tens of millions of followers, of nursing a political bias and censoring conservatives.
Facebook, Instagram and other social media outlets also banned his account, alleging that his postings incite violence after a violent mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol on January 6.
Trump, who lost to his Democractic Party rival, Joe Biden in the November 4 presidential election, was accused of inciting riots in the US Capitol on January 6 which left five people, including a police officer, dead.
The short-lived blog, unveiled last month, was dubbed as a new communications platform at the time of its launch.
Miller had said that the Desk page was a great resource to find Trump's statements, but this is not a new social media platform.
Trump's blog struggled to engage with the people on a large scale, NBC News reported a week after its launch, citing data compiled with BuzzSumo.
After being banned by Twitter in January in an unprecedented move, Trump slammed the California-based microblogging site, vowing that he and his support base would not be silenced.
At the time of permanent suspension, Trump, who is now based in his resort in Florida, had 88.7 million followers and followed 51 people.
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Allu Arjun didn't leave theatre despite being told about woman's death: Hyderabad police
Hyderabad, Dec 22: Top Telugu actor Allu Arjun did not leave the theatre during the screening of 'Pushpa-2' on December 4 despite being told to do so in view of a stampede in which a woman died, police officials claimed on on Sunday.
Speaking at a press conference on the annual round-up of 2024, city police commissioner C V Anand showed a video, made by police, on the situation that prevailed when the stampede occurred.
The video was made by collating footage, including from news channels and cell phone clips. It suggests the actor remained in the theatre till the midnight.
Anand did not make any comment on the video, but said the media can draw its own conclusions.
A police official talked about the sequence of events on the fateful night of December 4.
He said that he and other police officials informed a manager of Allu Arjun about the death of the woman and told him that the situation was out of control. He indicated that they were not allowed to meet the actor.
Allu Arjun's staff members told them that they would convey the matter to the actor but did not do so, he said.
The official said he later managed to reach the actor, told him about the woman's death and asked him to leave the theatre so that the fans don't harm each other while trying to catch a glimpse of him.
The official also told the actor that security arrangements would be made for his exit.
However, the actor said he would go only after watching the film, the police official said.
Later, accompanied by a senior officer, the official went inside and brought the actor out, he said.
Amid allegations that bouncers hired by Allu Arjun pushed crowds as well as policemen when the stampede occurred at the cinema hall, the police commissioner warned that stringent action as per law would be taken if THE bouncers indeed misbehaved with the police on duty.
The VIPs would be made responsible for the behaviour of the bouncers hired by them, he said.
Asked if the police would appeal against the interim bail granted to Allu Arjun, the commissioner refused to give a direct response, just saying it is part of the investigation.
What course of action is taken would be known in the days to come, he said.
He also declined to comment when asked if the family of the deceased told him about Allu Arjun's team or film production team allegedly threatening them not to speak on the issue.
Meanwhile, state Cinematography Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy found fault with Allu Arjun responding on Saturday to the debate in the Legislative Assembly.
The minister, who observed that the actor should have respect for the government and the chief minister, demanded an apology from Allu Arjun to the government and the CM.
"This government is never vindictive. As Cinematography Minister, we allowed benefit shows and hiking ticket prices to promote the film industry," he said.
However, Union Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay Kumar found fault with CM Revanth Reddy for his comments on Allu Arjun in the Assembly on Saturday.
The comments of the CM sounded like character assassination of Allu Arjun and hurting the Telugu film industry, he alleged in a statement.
Later in the day, Sanjay Kumar visited a boy who is undergoing treatment in a hospital after being injured in the stampede.
"Consoled his father over the heartbreaking loss of his wife, Revathi. I pray to god that Sritej recovers at the earliest. Assured support to the family in this difficult time," Kumar said on X.
Earlier in the day, state DGP Jitender told reporters in Karimnagar district that film personalities and all others should understand that safety and security of citizens is utmost important, and also conduct themselves accordingly.
