Summary:
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YouTube settles with Trump for $24.5 million over account suspension after Capitol riot in 2021. Trump plans to donate funds.
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Tech giants like Facebook and Twitter also reached settlements with Trump for suspending his accounts. Legal battle ends.
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Critics fear payouts set dangerous precedent, while Trump supporters view settlements as validation of claims of censorship.
YouTube has agreed to pay former President Donald Trump $24.5 million, ending a years-long legal battle over the suspension of his account following the January 6 Capitol riot.
The settlement, filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on Monday, marks another major payout by a tech giant to resolve disputes with Trump. According to court records, $22 million of the payment will go directly to Trump, who has said he will donate the funds to the Trust for the National Mall and toward building a White House ballroom. The remaining $2.5 million will be distributed among other plaintiffs, including author Naomi Wolf and the American Conservative Union.
YouTube just agreed to pay President Trump $24.5 million for suspending his account in 2021.
Facebook agreed to pay Trump $25 million for suspending him.
Twitter agreed to pay Trump $10 million for suspending him.
ABC News agreed to pay Trump $15 million to settle a defamation…
— Danielle D’Souza Gill (@danielledsouzag) September 30, 2025
Why Trump Sued YouTube
YouTube suspended Trump’s channel in January 2021, citing concerns that his videos could incite further violence in the wake of the Capitol attack. Trump filed suit in October 2021 against YouTube’s parent company, Alphabet, arguing the move amounted to unlawful censorship.
The settlement ends a case that had largely stalled for years. Legal experts note that while social platforms were on a strong legal footing, companies may be motivated to close these chapters as Trump returns to the White House. “The law was on their side,” said Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond law professor. “The settlements look like buying influence”.
YouTube is only the latest company to strike a deal with Trump. Earlier this year, Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, agreed to pay $25 million, while X, formerly known as Twitter, settled for $10 million. In July, Paramount reached a $16 million agreement tied to the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris, and ABC News followed in December, paying $15 million to resolve a defamation case involving anchor George Stephanopoulos. Together, these payouts reflect Trump’s broader legal strategy of pressuring media and tech firms while amplifying his long-running claims of bias and censorship.
For Alphabet, which reported $9.7 billion in YouTube ad revenue last quarter alone, the $24.5 million payout is small. But the symbolism is large. Executives including Sundar Pichai and Sergey Brin have met with Trump at the White House in recent weeks, underscoring how Silicon Valley is recalibrating its relationship with the administration.
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Meanwhile, critics argue that payouts risk setting a precedent where companies seek to “buy peace” rather than fight on First Amendment grounds. Trump supporters, however, see the settlements as validation of claims that he was unfairly silenced online.
