Originally published 2021-03-23.
In March 2021, two months after he was banned from Twitter and suspended from Facebook, Donald Trump's adviser Jason Miller announced that the former president would return to social media within two or three months on "his own platform". The plan took longer than promised. A short-lived blog appeared in May 2021, and the real platform, Truth Social, launched in February 2022. Trump eventually regained his Twitter and Facebook accounts too, but kept Truth Social as his main channel, including after returning to the White House in 2025.
Here is how the plan began, what happened to it, and why a personal social network became a business and political tool in its own right.
Why Trump was banned
On 6 January 2021, a crowd of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol as Congress met to certify Joe Biden's election victory. Five people died in connection with the events of that day or shortly after, and many police officers were injured.
Within days, Twitter permanently suspended Trump's account, citing the risk of further incitement of violence. Facebook and Instagram blocked him indefinitely, and YouTube suspended his channel. The platforms said his posts had spread false claims about the election and risked encouraging more violence. For a politician who had used Twitter as his main megaphone, with around 88 million followers, losing it was a major blow.
Jason Miller's announcement
On 21 March 2021, Miller, a long-time Trump spokesperson and adviser, told Fox News's MediaBuzz programme that Trump would be back within two or three months with a new platform that would attract tens of millions of users.
.@JasonMillerinDC said President Trump will be "returning to social media in two or three months" with "his own platform" that will "completely redefine the game" and attract "tens of millions" of new users. #MediaBuzz
— #MediaBuzz (@MediaBuzzFNC) March 21, 2021
Miller predicted it would be "the hottest ticket in social media" and would completely redefine the game. Few details followed. It was not clear who would build the platform, how it would be financed, or whether Trump would join an existing alternative network instead.
What actually launched, and when
The first result fell well short of the promise. In May 2021 Trump's team launched a page on his website called "From the Desk of Donald J. Trump", which displayed short statements in a format resembling tweets. Visitors could share the posts elsewhere but could not reply. It attracted modest traffic and was shut down in early June 2021, less than a month after it opened.
Miller himself went on to become chief executive of GETTR, a separate alternative social network that launched in mid-2021. Trump did not join it.
In October 2021, the newly formed Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) announced Truth Social. The app launched on Apple's App Store on 21 February 2022 and briefly topped the download charts, though many users were placed on a waiting list and the service struggled with technical problems and low engagement in its early months. Former congressman Devin Nunes left Congress to run TMTG.
Truth Social as a business
TMTG merged with a special-purpose acquisition company, Digital World Acquisition Corp, after a long delay that included an investigation by US market regulators. The combined company began trading on the Nasdaq in March 2024 under the ticker DJT, using Trump's initials.
The stock has been volatile, swinging with Trump's political fortunes. The company has reported very small revenues compared with its market value and large net losses, around $401 million in 2024 on revenue of about $3.6 million, according to its filings as summarised by Wikipedia. Audience estimates vary widely; analytics firms have put daily US users in the hundreds of thousands, a fraction of the scale of X or Facebook.
Alternative platforms and why most struggle
Truth Social joined a crowded field of networks pitching themselves as alternatives to mainstream platforms, including Parler, Gab, GETTR and Rumble. Many attracted users who had been banned elsewhere or who felt mainstream sites censored conservative views.
These platforms face recurring challenges:
- Network effects. People join social networks to reach other people. Without a large general audience, it is hard to grow.
- App store and hosting rules. Parler was removed from Apple and Google stores and dropped by Amazon's web hosting in January 2021 over moderation concerns, showing how dependent new networks are on tech gatekeepers.
- Advertising. Big brands are cautious about appearing beside unmoderated content, which limits revenue.
- Moderation. Even platforms promising free speech end up removing spam, illegal content and harassment, and face criticism either way.
Truth Social's advantage was simple: it had Trump, and his posts were widely reported by mainstream media, giving them reach far beyond the platform's own users.
Return to the mainstream and to power
After Elon Musk bought Twitter, Trump's account was reinstated in November 2022. Meta announced in January 2023 that it would restore his Facebook and Instagram accounts as well. Trump returned to posting on those platforms over time, but continued to describe Truth Social as his primary outlet.
The March 2021 article speculated about a 2024 presidential run. In February 2021, the Senate had acquitted Trump in his second impeachment trial, 57 votes to 43, short of the two-thirds needed to convict. Had he been convicted, the Senate could then have held a separate vote to bar him from future office. Trump ran in 2024, defeated Kamala Harris, and was inaugurated on 20 January 2025 at the age of 78, the oldest person to take the office.
As president for a second time, he has continued to announce policies and personnel decisions on Truth Social first, which has turned a platform built in exile into a primary source for news about the US government.
Sources: CNN: Trump will use 'his own platform' to return to social media (21 March 2021); Wikipedia: Truth Social; Axios: Truth Social launches in App Store but still puts users on waitlist (21 February 2022); original reporting via The Mind Unleashed.
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