Meta denies forcing users to follow the Trump administration account

The account carries the handle Potus — which stands for “president of the United States” — as well as Vice President and Flotus, an acronym for first lady.

An archived version of the page shows the Potus and Flotus accounts that previously used the names and official portraits of Joe Biden and Jill Biden, respectively.

Mr Stone added that it “takes some time to follow up and cancel requests to run when these accounts change hands”.

Trump became US president for a second term on Monday and has been quick to issue a series of executive orders and directives that underline his political agenda – from withdrawing from the World Health Organization to declaring a national emergency on the border with Mexico.

His inauguration was attended by some of the most influential tech billionaires, including Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg and X boss Elon Musk, who also has an advisory role in the new administration.

Trump has previously been highly critical of Meta, who banned him in 2021 for what he described as “praising people who engage in violence” during the January 6 riots at the US Capitol.

The president and his allies also accused the company of working with the Biden administration to stop reporting on allegations about Biden’s son, Hunter, and some content about the Covid pandemic. Mr Zuckerberg said he was saddened by the decision.

In August, Trump wrote in a book that Zuckerberg would “spend the rest of his life in prison” if he tried to interfere in the 2024 presidential election.

Since Trump’s election victory in early November, Mr Zuckerberg has appeared to take a liking to him, dining with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago residence at the end of the month and donating $1m (£786,000) to his inauguration. week later.

Meta also said earlier this month that it would end third-party fact-checking in favor of a similar approach to the X community record, in an apparent attempt to address some of Trump’s previous criticism.

The company said this marks a return to its “fundamental commitment to free expression”.