WASHINGTON, 30 September 2025 – YouTube has agreed to pay $24.5 million to settle a lawsuit brought by former U.S. President Donald Trump, after the platform suspended his account in the wake of the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot.
The settlement, reached with YouTube’s parent company Alphabet, follows similar agreements Trump has struck with other social media giants. Earlier this year, Meta agreed to a $25 million settlement, including $22 million earmarked for Trump’s presidential library, while X — purchased in 2022 by Trump ally Elon Musk — settled for a reported $10 million a month later.
At the time of Trump’s suspension, social media companies argued he risked inciting further violence in Washington, D.C. Trump, however, accused YouTube and other platforms of political bias, claiming they unfairly censored conservative voices.
Settlement Details
Under the agreement announced Monday, YouTube will pay $22 million to the Trust for the National Mall, which is raising $200 million to build a new ballroom at the White House. Another $2.5 million will go to other organisations and individuals who joined Trump’s lawsuit, including the American Conservative Union.
“YouTube values conservative voices on its platform and recognizes that these creators have extensive reach and play an important role in civic discourse,” the company told a Republican-led congressional committee last week, as it announced plans to reinstate several previously banned accounts.
Tech Giants Shift Tone
The settlement underscores a broader shift in Silicon Valley’s approach to Trump. All of his social media accounts, including YouTube, Meta and X have since been reinstated.
The CEOs of Alphabet, Meta and X were seated prominently at Trump’s inauguration, a gesture viewed by many as a reset in relations between the Republican Party and the tech industry.
Meanwhile, platforms have begun loosening content moderation policies that Republicans long criticized as an infringement on free speech. YouTube recently announced it would restore accounts banned for spreading false claims about Covid-19 and the 2020 U.S. election.
