美国国家公共电台 NPR Truth Social, Donald Trump's social media app, launches year after Twitter ban

Truth Social, Donald Trump¹'s social media app, launches year after Twitter ban

Transcript²

Over a year ago, former President Donald Trump got booted from social media sites owned by Meta and Twitter. He vowed³ to create his own, and Truth Social launched on Monday.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Just over a year ago, former President Donald Trump got booted from social media sites, including YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. He then vowed to create his own platform. He calls it Truth Social. And it launched yesterday. I talked earlier with NPR tech reporter Bobby Allyn about it.

BOBBY ALLYN, BYLINE⁴: So there was tons of interest. The app was released Monday morning and quickly shot to the top of Apple's most downloaded list. But many people, myself included, who tried to check it out were stuck in a kind of tech doom⁵ loop. You know, there were these email confirmations⁶ that were promised and never arrived. You'd put in a code and get an error message. This was widely reported across Twitter and other social media. Those who were able to make accounts were placed on a wait list, with some hundreds of thousands of people in front of them.

MARTIN: Bless you for doing that for the sake of journalism⁷, Bobby.

ALLYN: (Laughter).

MARTIN: So just remind us the larger context here. Twitter, of course, banned Trump. But say more about his agenda with this app.

ALLYN: Yeah. Exactly. So you know, since he was banned from Twitter, Facebook and YouTube after statements he made urging supporters to storm the Capitol, you know, he has wanted to start his own Twitter-esque service. And he's enlisted⁸ former Congressman⁹ Devin Nunes to lead the effort. Nunes recently went on Fox News to talk up Truth Social. He says all the bugs¹⁰ will be worked out by the end of March and that it's all about, you know, giving people their voice back and creating a social media platform that's not controlled by a big Silicon¹¹ Valley company. And let me remind you, this is a really crowded space, Rachel. There's, like, half a dozen other conservative-leading, you know, social media apps trying to pull people away from the Twitters and Facebooks of the world.

MARTIN: Right. So he has competition. Even Donald Trump has competition in that space. So does this app, then - with Trump's name attached to it, does it have any kind of shot of breaking through?

ALLYN: Certainly has a very powerful publicity¹² machine. I mean, Trump allies, like representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene and Matt Gaetz, are talking it up, so is Fox News star Sean Hannity. It has raised hundreds of millions of dollars. So given these big names and its sizable fundraising, you know, it does have potential. But experts I talked to are pretty doubtful that it will ever come anywhere close to replacing Twitter. Here's Hunter College professor Jessie Daniels, who studies online extremism.

JESSIE DANIELS: I think part of what he has found so valuable, especially about Twitter, is that it both is relied upon by journalists as a source, and it's used by a real cross section of people politically. And so Twitter becomes a kind of target-rich environment.

ALLYN: In other words, Truth Social might not be that, right? Twitter has some 300 million users and lots of different views, lots of viral squabbles. And if a platform is mostly like-minded people, you know, basically an echo chamber¹³, you might not have those fights that make Twitter create so many headlines.

MARTIN: Although, it can serve to animate¹⁴ his base, couldn't it?

ALLYN: That's true. No, that is very true. you know? But, you know, there's also only so many people interested in a non-mainstream alternative to Twitter.

MARTIN: Yeah.

ALLYN: So it's sort of, you know, are these people really - who are at other sites going to go to Trump's new site? And I will note here, Rachel, that I checked out the app's terms of service. And there is one thing that is prohibited on Truth Social, and that is, quote, to "disparage¹⁵, tarnish¹⁶ or otherwise harm" the backers of the site. And I imagine that means Donald Trump.

MARTIN: NPR's Bobby Allyn. We appreciate your reporting on this, Bobby. Thanks.

ALLYN: Thanks, Rachel.

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 doom   

n.厄运，劫数；v.注定，命定

参考例句：

• The report on our economic situation is full of doom and gloom.这份关于我们经济状况的报告充满了令人绝望和沮丧的调子。
• The dictator met his doom after ten years of rule.独裁者统治了十年终于完蛋了。

6 confirmations   

证实( confirmation的名词复数 )； 证据； 确认； （基督教中的）坚信礼

参考例句：

• Never use transitory dialogs as error messages or confirmations. 绝不要用临时对话框作为错误信息框或确认信息框。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Dismissing confirmations thus becomes as routine as issuing them. 因此关闭确认对话框和发起确认对话框一样成为例行公事。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

7 journalism   

n.新闻工作，报业

参考例句：

• He's a teacher but he does some journalism on the side.他是教师，可还兼职做一些新闻工作。
• He had an aptitude for journalism.他有从事新闻工作的才能。

8 enlisted   

adj.应募入伍的v.（使）入伍， （使）参军( enlist的过去式和过去分词 )；获得（帮助或支持）

参考例句：

• enlisted men and women 男兵和女兵
• He enlisted with the air force to fight against the enemy. 他应募加入空军对敌作战。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

10 bugs   

adj.疯狂的，发疯的n.窃听器( bug的名词复数 )；病菌；虫子；[计算机]（制作软件程序所产生的意料不到的）错误

参考例句：

• All programs have bugs and need endless refinement. 所有的程序都有漏洞，都需要不断改进。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

12 publicity   

n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告

参考例句：

• The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
• He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事，只当它是一种宣传手法。

13 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

14 animate   

v.赋于生命，鼓励；adj.有生命的，有生气的

参考例句：

• We are animate beings,living creatures.我们是有生命的存在，有生命的动物。
• The girls watched,little teasing smiles animating their faces.女孩们注视着，脸上挂着调皮的微笑，显得愈加活泼。

15 disparage   

v.贬抑，轻蔑

参考例句：

• Your behaviour will disparage the whole family.你的行为将使全家丢脸。
• Never disparage yourself or minimize your strength or power.不要贬低你自己或降低你的力量或能力。

16 tarnish   

n.晦暗，污点；vt.使失去光泽；玷污

参考例句：

• The affair could tarnish the reputation of the prime minister.这一事件可能有损首相的名誉。
• Stainless steel products won't tarnish.不锈钢产品不会失去光泽。