Big Tech's ban on Donald Trump sparks debate about power wielded by companies

In the past week, “Big Tech” - applications like Facebook, Google, Instagram, Twitter, and others have taken unprecedented decisions, like bootingUS President Trump out of their platforms. By next week, Donald Trump is also slated to leave the presidential office, but for now he remains the world’s most powerful leader.

12 technology companies have either banned Donald Trump, or restricted him in the aftermath of the violence which led to five deaths in the US Capitol last week.

Donald Trump can no longer update his status on Facebook, or Tweet. He is also banned from Google, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, and Twitch. In addition, TikTok has also banned the US president who wanted a ban on the app itself.

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The internet has turned on Donald Trump, and the medium that once celebrated him has now dumped him. Trump can't even go to Parler - a mash-up of Twitter and Instagram which is largely considered a right-wing social media application.

It has been banned by Apple, Google and Amazon, denying the platform any internet presence. The unfathomable violence that took place at US Capitol cannot be defended, but Big Tech has taken the route of censorship. They can silence an elected president, and can also shutdown an app.

Should Big Tech have such superpowers?

Private companies with unchecked power have the possibility of becoming bigger than law itself, and world leaders have woken up to this reality.

Angela Merkel’s spokesperson has issued a statement, claiming that Twitter’s ban on Trump is “problematic”. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has slammed the ban too, calling it a “bad sign”. Nikki Haley, the former US Ambassador to the UN compared the ban to political censorship in China. Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny called it "an unacceptable act of censorship". British Health Secretary Matt Hancock believes it’s time to regulate social media companies.

Twitter still stands by on its ban on Trump. Now, Facebook says the ban on Trump is indefinite.

“No plans to lift it right now, but indefinite, at least through the transition, we've been very clear. There's obviously so much happening and this is such a big step. We will definitely let people know and be very transparent about any changes to that”, said Sheryl Sandberg, the Chief Operating Officer at Facebook.

“This shows that even the president is not above the policies we have”, Sandberg added.

Big Tech is relentless, setting the rules of the game, with its decisions deemed final. From the president of a country, to an average user, a handful of tech giants can dictate the terms.