President Donald Trump is violating free speech laws by blocking critics on Twitter, a New York federal appeals court has ruled.<\/p>\n
It follows a case brought on behalf of seven individuals who had been blocked by the president.<\/p>\n
Officials using social media accounts were not allowed to silence people who disagreed with them, the judge said.<\/p>\n
President Trump’s lawyers argued that his Twitter account was a personal one and not subject to those rules.<\/p>\n
A US Department of Justice official said it was disappointed by the ruling and was exploring next steps.<\/p>\n
In its ruling, the appeals court said: “The First Amendment does not permit a public official who utilises a social media account for all manner of official purposes to exclude persons from an otherwise\u2010open online dialogue because they expressed views with which the official disagrees.”<\/p>\n
The ruling follows one made in May last year by the Court for the Southern District of New York that found the president’s Twitter account, @realDonaldTrump, constituted a public forum.<\/p>\n
Another case heard in Virginia ruled in favour of resident Brian Davison, who had been blocked from the Facebook page of a local public official.<\/p>\n
“The irony in all of this is that we write at a time in the history of this nation when the conduct of our government and its officials is subject to wide-open, robust debate,” Judge Parker wrote on behalf of a three-judge panel.<\/p>\n
The case against President Trump was brought in 2017 by the Knight First Amendment Institute.<\/p>\n
Director Jameel Jaffer said of the ruling: “Public officials’ social media accounts are now among the most significant forums for discussion of government policy.<\/p>\n
“This decision will ensure that people aren’t excluded from these forums simply because of their viewpoints and that public officials aren’t insulated from their constituents’ criticism.<\/p>\n
“The decision will help ensure the integrity and vitality of digital spaces that are increasingly important to our democracy.”<\/p>\n
According to the institute, 75 individuals have now been unblocked.<\/p>\n
But 30, including author Stephen King and model Chrissy Teigen, remain blocked.<\/p>\n
Source: bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"