Woah...! Facebook just suspended @realDonaldTrump’s Facebook and Instagram account...indefinitely!

Zuck has spoken https://www.facebook.com/4/posts/10112681480907401/?d=n

The general response to this will no doubt be that Facebook (Mark) should have made this call sooner and not have allowed its platform to be used by Trump in the way it was.

Personally, I think ALL of the platforms should have put greater restrictions on Trump’s account sooner.

However, an outright ban or suspension is a big step to take and an even harder one when the person is the president of a country such as the U.S, which rightly values and advocates democracy and free speech.

Like many other commentators have already said, social networks are NOT the sole cause of many of the world’s problems.

However, the way we ALL use social media is part of the problem. And the platforms can and must do a lot more to prevent their tools from being weaponised.

dismantling social networks is not the solution to the many problems and issues they cause or are part of.

Well crafted regulation would help, but is only one piece of a complex puzzle to be solved in reducing some of the damage social media increasingly leads to.

Far greater Transparency and openness by the major platforms in relation to decision making and their algorithms is needed.

And greater incentives or harsher penalties should exist to stimulate the right behaviours from the platforms

The biggest single thing we can all do today to tackle ours concerns about social media is to educate ourselves and others about how the platforms work. Especially younger, more vulnerable users.