Trump shuts down blog 'From the desk of Donald J Trump' month after launch

Former US President Donald Trump's communication channel, "From the Desk of Donald J Trump," was shut down in less than a month after it was launched. The page had been erased, according to Jason Miller, a senior staffer to Trump. The page "will not be returning," Miller told CNBC. Miller explained, "It was just auxiliary to the broader efforts we have and are working on." Those who try to access the page are now welcomed with a web form that requests their contact information in order to receive updates by email or text message.

Former US President Trump shuts down blog

The "From the Desk of Donald J Trump" blog debuted on May 4, months after the former President was banned from Facebook (FB) and Twitter (TWTR).  According to reports, the website was marketed at the time as a place for Trump to talk directly to his followers. Fox News, which was the first to report about Trump's blog, labelled it a "new communications platform." However, in a statement issued late last month, Trump challenged Fox's interpretation.

He noted, "This is meant to be a temporary way of getting my thoughts and ideas out to the public without the Fake News spin, but the website is not a platform." The former President established the communication platform on the eve of a decision by Facebook's oversight board on whether to allow him back onto the social networking site after being banned from social media sites including Facebook.

From the desk of Donald J. Trump

The platform, which is a subsection of the former president's website, was named From the Desk of Donald J Trump. Trump spokesman Jason Miller had said on Twitter that the new website is "a great resource to find his latest statements and highlights from his first term in office," but added "this is not a new social media platform. We''ll have additional information coming on that front in the very near future." "Straight from the desk of Donald J Trump," stated a 30-second video, which was on the site, that alluded to his social media ban.  Trump's written statements since leaving office on January 20 were written on the website. Trump also used the platform's camera functionality to make video statements.

(with inputs from ANI)

Picture Credit: AP