The indictment of former President Donald J. Trump has been good news for Truth Social, the social media website he founded. Traffic has surged on the site since the indictment was announced, according to estimates from Similarweb, a web traffic monitoring company.
Mr. Trump has frequently used Truth Social to react to news about the indictment, using his feed to attack Alvin L. Bragg, New York’s district attorney, and Judge Juan M. Merchan, who is overseeing the case.
Mr. Trump’s prediction that he would be indicted, which he posted to Truth Social on March 18, drove nearly 400,000 visits from the United States to the fledgling social media website that day, the company found. The site has averaged about 200,000 visits from the United States each day since March 1, 2022. The data does not include traffic to Truth Social’s Apple or Android apps.
Traffic ebbed after the indictment did not arrive when Mr. Trump said it would. Traffic surged again last Thursday, when the indictment was officially announced, bringing over 314,000 visits from the United States to the website.
Truth Social’s influence has grown in conservative circles since it officially launched in February 2022. But its business prospects have dimmed as the site struggled to secure funding and launched an ad business marred by fringe advertisers.
Stuart A. Thompson
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