YouTube has agreed to pay $24.5m (£18.6m) to settle a lawsuit brought by Donald Trump, after the platform suspended his account in the wake of the January 6 attack on the US Capitol.
The settlement, announced by YouTube’s parent company Alphabet, follows similar payouts by other major social media platforms. Both Facebook (Meta) and X (formerly Twitter) had earlier reached agreements with the former president after suspending his accounts in 2021.
Trump’s lawsuit accused the tech companies of political bias and censorship, claiming conservative voices had been unfairly silenced. At the time, YouTube and others defended the decision, stating that Trump’s presence online posed the risk of inciting further violence in Washington, D.C.
Where the Money Will Go
Under the terms of the settlement, YouTube will allocate $22m to the Trust for the National Mall, a non-profit organisation working to raise $200m for the construction of a new ballroom at the White House.
The remaining $2.5m will be distributed among other plaintiffs, including the American Conservative Union and several individuals who had joined Trump’s lawsuit.
Other Settlements With Big Tech
YouTube is the latest social media company to resolve disputes with Trump.
- In January, Facebook’s parent company Meta reached a $25m settlement, with $22m reportedly designated for Trump’s planned presidential library.
- A month later, X (purchased by Trump ally Elon Musk in 2022) agreed to a $10m settlement.
All of Trump’s accounts on major platforms have since been reinstated.
A Shift in Silicon Valley’s Stance
The wave of settlements comes as Silicon Valley has begun striking a more conciliatory tone toward Trump. At his inauguration, the CEOs of Alphabet, Meta, and X all sat in the front row, signaling a notable shift in the relationship between the Republican Party and tech leadership.
In addition, major social platforms have loosened content moderation policies, a long-standing criticism from conservatives who argued moderation amounted to censorship of free speech.
Just last week, YouTube announced plans to restore several accounts previously banned for spreading misinformation about Covid-19 and the 2020 election. In a letter to a Republican-controlled congressional committee, YouTube emphasized: “YouTube values conservative voices on its platform and recognizes that these creators have extensive reach and play an important role in civic discourse.”
The Bigger Picture
The settlements highlight how major tech firms are recalibrating their approach to content regulation, political pressure, and free speech debates heading into another election cycle. For Trump, the payouts mark not just financial victories, but symbolic ones—cementing his return to platforms that once silenced him.
