(Bloomberg) -- Amazon.com Inc.’s livestreaming site Twitch has reinstated former President Donald Trump’s account three years after he was banned.
In January 2021, Twitch removed Trump’s account “indefinitely” after the riot at the US Capitol “due to the ongoing risk of further incitement of violence,” a spokesperson said at the time. Trump was previously banned in 2020 for what Twitch called “hateful conduct.”
On Friday, a day after Trump accepted the Republican nomination for president again, his account reappeared. It had just 41 followers shortly after its return. It formerly peaked at 150,000 in 2021.“We believe there is value in hearing from presidential nominees directly, when possible,’’ a spokesperson for Twitch said in a statement. “Trump is now the official Republican nominee for US president.”The company said it would continue to enforce its community guidelines and take necessary action when it identifies violations. Twitch applies the same rules to public figures as it does to other contributors.Twitch began as a site for video-game fans to post and watch other enthusiasts playing games. While that is still a core part of its traffic, other personalities, including political ones, have streamed video on the platform.
Trump’s reinstatement was posted earlier by independent reporter Rod Breslau.
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