After reports, Trump turns eye to his own social media followers

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A day after reports detailed Russia’s widespread use of social media to meddle in U.S. politics, President Donald Trump on Tuesday repeated his complaints, without offering evidence, about social media bias against him and accused Twitter of blocking his followers.

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump talks to the media on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington before his departure for the annual Army-Navy college football game in Philadelphia, U.S., December 8, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

On Monday, a pair of reports released by Republicans and Democrats in the Senate said Moscow’s interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election was more widespread than previously thought and aimed at dividing Americans.

U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia worked to influence the presidential vote in an effort to boost Trump and denigrate his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton. Russia has denied any meddling.

In recent months, social media companies have worked to remove millions of suspicious accounts in the wake of the misinformation campaigns.

Trump, an avid Twitter user, and other conservatives have repeatedly accused technology companies of being biased against them and of favoring liberals.

In a post on Twitter on Tuesday, Trump did not address the latest findings about broad Russian interference in the election. Instead, he accused Twitter of blocking his followers and making it harder for people to follow him.

“It is ridiculous,” he wrote. “They have acknowledged-done NOTHING!”

He accused Facebook Inc, Alphabet Inc’s Google and Twitter Inc of favoring Democrats, but offered no evidence.

Representatives for the companies could not be immediately reached for comment.

Congress is examining social media and other technology companies over a range of issues. Trump has also said he would consider working with Democrats to regulate the networks.

Reporting by Susan Heavey, Editing by Franklin Paul and Bernadette Baum

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
source: reuters.com