Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Donald Trump promises to be 'very restrained' on Twitter in future

The President-elect, who was notorious for his inflammatory tweets, says Twitter helped him win the election but now he is going to change his tune

Maya Oppenheim
Sunday 13 November 2016 13:22 GMT
Comments
He applauds the freedom of social media and emphasized Twitter’s ability to spread messages
He applauds the freedom of social media and emphasized Twitter’s ability to spread messages

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

If you are one of the 14 million people who follows Donald Trump on Twitter, you will probably have noticed that his modus operandi has changed somewhat. He has gone from firing off inflammatory tweets at ungodly times of the night to adopting an uncharacteristically mild-mannered, composed tone.

The President-elect has now explained that this new attitude to the social media site is here to stay, explaining that he is going to be “very restrained” in his Twitter usage from here on in.

Mr Trump also said he believed social media had played a massive role in his election victory.

Speaking on CBS's 60 Minutes program which is due to air on Sunday, the billionaire businessman said: “I'm going to be very restrained, if I use it at all, I'm going to be very restrained.”

He applauded the freedom of social media and emphasized Twitter’s ability to spread messages.

“It's a great form of communication. I'm not saying I love it, but it does get the word out."

"When you give me a bad story or when you give me an inaccurate story or when somebody other than you and another - a network, or whatever, because of course, CBS would never do a thing like that right? I have a method of fighting back...

"I think that social media has more power than the money they spent, and I think maybe to a certain extent, I proved that".

Since his shock victory, Mr Trump has tweeted promising to never forget “the forgotten man and woman” and about his ”really good meeting with President Obama”. On Thursday he posted a controversial tweet saying it is “unfair” that people “incited by the media” are protesting his win, dubbing them: “professional protesters.”

However day later, he appeared to have a change of heart, saying: “Love the fact that the small groups of protesters last night have passion for our great country. We will all come together and be proud!”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in