Public Information for a Fee: Legal Battle Against Trump's Truth Social Begins

The American publication Intercept and the non-profit organization Freedom of the Press Foundation have filed a lawsuit against the social media platform Truth Social for selling premium access to posts made by Donald Trump.

The plaintiffs seek to have the practice of exclusively posting official government information on Truth Social declared unconstitutional, where access via API is monetized, and to prohibit such practices.

Trump's Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) announced the launch of its new paid data service, Truth API, in July, which allows traders and large investors to obtain rapid access to the president's posts on the social network. This service was launched in August.

“The plaintiffs are asking the court to declare the defendants' practice of exclusively posting official government information on Truth Social unconstitutional and illegal, where access to such information via API is paid,” the filing submitted to the New York District Court states. The document also includes a demand to prohibit the posting of official government information exclusively on the Truth Social platform.