Trump Begins Beta Testing His Truth Social Network, A $1B Backed Twitter Competitor

The launch of the Truth Social media platform may be closer than was originally thought. Donald Trump Jr., the son of former president Donald Trump, posted a screenshot of his father’s first post on Truth Social. The post stated, “Get Ready! Your favorite President will see you soon!”

Liz Willis, VP of operations at Right Side Broadcasting Network, confirmed that the Truth Social beta has opened up to some users. She remarked, “Truth Social (beta) has dropped and President Trump is active on his own account! The world is healing.” Trump reportedly “officially” joined the social media platform on February 10th and has 175 beta followers. A few other individuals and organizations also remarked that they have access to the beta. Representative Ronny Jackson of Texas and video service Rumble both tweeted screenshots of their first Truth Social posts.

There has been no official announcement yet on when Truth Social will open to the public. The Apple App Store states that the app will become available on Monday, February 21st or President’s Day. Those who are interested can currently sign-up for the waitlist on the Truth Social website.

Time for some Truth!!! pic.twitter.com/jvyteDb5gW

— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) February 15, 2022

Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. (TMTG) announced this past December that it had received $1 billion from a “diverse group of institutional investors” upon a successful merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp. (DWAC). Trump noted at the time of the announcement that, “$1 billion sends an important message to Big Tech that censorship and political discrimination must end. America is ready for Truth Social, a platform that will not discriminate on the basis of political ideology.”

The few glimpses of the platform that have been posted online demonstrate that it is similar in design to existing platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Trump contends that the purpose of Truth Social and other TMTG projects is to provide platforms for users to share their perspectives regardless of their political beliefs or affiliations. Trump has argued that existing social media platforms are corrupt and that they have fallen down a “slippery slope” of censorship. He noted in a statement this past October that Truth Social will not have “shadow-banning, throttling, demonetizing, or messing with algorithms for political manipulation.”

Image courtesy of TMTG