Meta Says It Didn't Force Users To Follow President Trump On Facebook And Instagram

CBS Bay Area

January 23, 2025

Meta is denying claims circulating on social media that it forced Facebook and Instagram users to follow President Trump's official accounts, saying the changes some users noticed were standard practices tied to the transition of the POTUS account from the previous administration to the incoming one.

The company also said that it is working to resolve an issue on Instagram that temporarily blocked certain political terms, including "Democrats" and "Republican," from search results.

Some Facebook and Instagram users reported on Monday that their accounts automatically followed President Trump, Vice President Vance, and first lady Melania Trump's accounts under the @POTUS, @VicePresident, and @FLOTUS handles, respectively. Some said they never followed the accounts in the first place, and when they tried to unfollow the pages they were prevented from doing so.

Click here for the full story via CBS San Francisco

CBS Local Digital Media personalizes the global reach of CBS-owned and operated television and radio stations with a local perspective.