Trump Media reportedly mulling fee for first access to social media posts

US president has often been accused of trading authorities power for improper fiscal gain.

United States President Donald Trump’s societal media institution is reportedly considering charging a $100,00 monthly interest for precedence entree to his societal media posts.

But that imaginable has raised large ethical concerns, with critics denouncing the thought arsenic a obstruction to authorities transparency — and a means for Trump to nett from the presidency.

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The quality bureau Reuters indicated connected Friday that Trump Media and Technology Group, which owns the website Truth Social, has discussed charging fiscal traders and firms a steep interest for aboriginal entree to Trump’s posts.

A lower-tier interest of $60,000 a period was besides reportedly discussed for firms that motion up for a three-year plan. The British paper The Financial Times besides reported akin details.

As president of 1 of the world’s largest economies, Trump has the powerfulness to determination markets with his statements. Economists accidental his remarks connected societal media — astir caller policies similar tariffs oregon planetary conflicts — tin spur changes successful planetary fiscal prospects.

But pushback to the Truth Social interest connection was swift. Trump has agelong garnered disapproval for leveraging the powerfulness of his office for personal benefit, and morals experts characterised immoderate interest arsenic a menace to the functioning of US democracy.

“He’s selling expedited, privileged entree to accusation astir what helium is doing arsenic president,” said Kathleen Clark, an adept successful conflict-of-interest rules astatine Washington University School of Law.

She told The Associated Press quality agency, “It’s yet much brazen corruption, an improper exploitation of authorities powerfulness to enrich himself.”

Trump has made predominant usage of societal media during his clip successful office. During his archetypal term, helium was an avid idiosyncratic connected the societal media level Twitter, present X.

But his mendacious claims astir the 2020 statesmanlike predetermination — and the consequent onslaught connected the US Capitol connected January 6, 2021 — prompted respective platforms to suspend his account.

Trump responded by investing successful his ain media institution instead, and helium owns a bulk involvement successful the Trump Media and Technology Group.

Truth Social is 1 of its signature products, and Trump has utilized the societal media level astir exclusively since his 2021 departure from Twitter.

He often turns to Truth Social to denote everything from attacks connected Iran to changes successful commercialized policy.

During the US-Israel warfare connected Iran, Trump’s societal media posts often prompted melodramatic swings successful the planetary vigor markets, which suffered arsenic Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz to commercialized traffic.

A societal media station from the president announcing a 90-day intermission connected caller tariffs connected April 9, 2025, besides saw fiscal indexes emergence sharply.

The Trump Media and Technology Group announced connected Thursday that it would connection a paid-for, licensed information provender dubbed “Truth API” for banks and trading firms, granting them privileged entree to the website’s 10 astir influential accounts, of which Trump’s is by acold the astir prominent.

Democratic lawmakers were among those who criticised that announcement, with Senator Ron Wyden saying that it would “make Wall Street traders rich” on with the Trump family.