Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Tuesday, Sep 30, 2025

All eyes are on the Facebook Oversight Board as its decision on Trump's account looms

All eyes are on the Facebook Oversight Board as its decision on Trump's account looms

Anticipation is building for the Facebook Oversight Board's looming decision on whether to keep or reverse a ban on former President Trump's account.

The board has said the decision will be announced "in the coming weeks." And Axios added fuel to the speculation Thursday when it published a story about how world leaders are bracing for the announcement.

"This is going to be a global moment," NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen commented. Indeed, Axios' Sara Fischer and Jonathan Swan pointed out, "the decision will set a historic precedent for how the tech giant treats accounts of world leaders, and could be a litmus test for the board's power."

And yet, amid the high level of interest and the suspense, neither Facebook nor the Oversight Board are commenting. I checked in with both parties about the forthcoming decision and mum is the word.

A big test


The decision from the Facebook Oversight Board could, first and foremost, serve as the biggest demonstration of the board's power and independence.

There are quite a few critics who are skeptical that the board is truly independent from Facebook. And there have also been concerns from critics about whether Facebook will abide by the board's recommendations. If the board were to buck Facebook and issue a decision that rebukes that of Facebook's, it would be quite the moment and could solidify the board's power or reveal it to be what some critics have suggested.

What we still don't know


In addition to not knowing when the actual decision will come down or what it will be, there are still several other unanswered questions. If the board does reinstate Trump, how soon might we see his account reactivated? Could Facebook agree to follow such a recommendation, but not allow him on back until some more time has passed since the insurrection? Could Trump's profile be reactivated, but in a more limited fashion? Might Facbeook implement additional restrictions on the account? And will the decision be less clear than simply saying whether Facebook should allow him back or not? Could the board make a decision in a more grey area that could be left open to interpretation?

How it could impact the GOP and news cycle


Donie O'Sullivan writes: "The decision from the board could change Trump's behavior and the entire dynamic of Republican politics. Right now, Trump's shadow looms large, but we normally only hear from him a few times a week through statements. Having the ability to post on Facebook could mean we are back to seeing Trump weighing in hourly, or multiple times an hour — whether it is what he sees on Fox or if it is armchair quarterbacking every move made by senior Republicans. Of course the question will be how much attention the GOP, the media, and voters, pay to what he says -- but this decision could dramatically impact the daily political conversation and the power dynamic in the party."

The potential political loophole


Donie adds: "Trump is no longer an elected official or a declared candidate, so if he were to be allowed back on Facebook, he would be subject to the company's fact-checks where he was not before. So you could potentially — again, if you were to be permitted back on the site — expect a lot of friction between Facebook and Trump as they label his posts false or misleading. What would be quite interesting is if Trump were to decide to declare 2024 candidacy early just to get around Facebook's fact-checking rules..."

For the record


-- "As the tech world waits to see whether Facebook kicks Donald Trump out for good or lets him back in, lawmakers are following along, seeing the case as a milestone in the fraught relationship between Big Tech and free speech," Caleb Ecarma writes. (Vanity Fair)

-- Rep. Ro Khanna: "I'm less concerned about the fate of Donald Trump as much as I am about the precedent that this is setting for the removal and de-platforming of everyone else." (Axios)

-- HuffPost's S.V. Dáte: "Facebook is going to decide whether it believes in democracy as a core value, or if it's a neutral observer in the both-sides struggle between democracy and authoritarianism." (Twitter)

-- Latest scoop from Craig Silverman, Ryan Mac, and Jane Lytvynenko: "An internal task force found that Facebook failed to take appropriate action against the Stop the Steal movement ahead of the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, and hoped the company could 'do better next time.'" (BuzzFeed)

-- Susan Glasser's warning: "The Trump administration is over, but the Trump crisis is not." (New Yorker)

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
×