When he’s not breeding horses or working on a construction site, 28-year-old Nick Mirtschink claims he spends “a lot” of time on Donald Trump’s social media network, Truth Social.

Bree Duke, a retiree from northwest Georgia, said she routinely checks in with Trump’s frequent updates, known as “truths.”

“I love it,” Duke told CNN. “I have it on my TV, and I have it on my phone.”

Mirtschink and Duke gave the app high ratings when visiting Trump’s recent rally in Rome, Georgia, where regular Truth Social users were easily found. Aside from his MAGA movement, the social media platform failsneeds to reach a larger audience. It is losing users, and traffic has plunged. As of November, the site had approximately 860,000 active accounts, which is a minor blip compared to more popular platforms.

Truth Social Made Trump Richer And Gave Him A New Megaphone. But It’s Struggling As A Social Media Site

Nonetheless, on Friday, Digital World Acquisition Corp. approved a lucrative merger with Trump Media & Technology Group, the owner of Truth Social, which is expected to result in a multibillion-dollar windfall for the former president despite mounting legal troubles and judgments that have jeopardized his business empire, personal wealth, and campaign finances. However, it will not provide immediate relief because Trump is barred from selling his shares for six months.

It’s a significant milestone for both the social media platform and Trump, paving the way for the former real estate mogul’s return to Wall Street. The company will trade under the ticker DJT, putting Trump’s initials among some of the world’s most renowned brands and corporations, much as Trump Tower did previously.

Trump’s passionate and combative Twitter presence helped him map a road to the presidency, but the social media site has also become a new platform for his unfiltered thoughts. His most loyal fans, political reporters, and even his staff and advisers rely on the site for a glimpse into his most recent thoughts, which he reveals in dozens of posts per day.

However, as Trump’s social media venture approaches its third year, the app’s long-term survival – and purpose – still need to be discovered. Truth Social is not a major danger to compete with, let alone Eclipse, X, Facebook, or YouTube; it is not in the top 100 most downloaded social media apps in the Apple App Store and has not established itself as a conservative alternative. Trump Media’s management warned last year that the company was on the verge of insolvency without a merger, and most experts are sceptical of its current worth of more than $6 billion.

“It’s grossly overvalued,” Jay Ritter, a finance professor at the University of Florida, told CNN earlier this week. “It qualifies as a meme stock for which the price is divorced from fundamental value.”

Instead, the sky-high appraisal appears to be linked to Trump’s electoral comeback. However, Truth Social has yet to demonstrate that it can survive, let alone grow unless the nation’s attention is focused on the site’s most famous user.

According to Josephine Lukito, a political and social media researcher at the University of Texas at Austin, “Donald Trump’s popularity is very much, if not entirely, driving Truth Social’s clout.” “Without him, I don’t think there’s a viable path forward for it.”

Early optimism.
Truth Social began in early 2022, a year after Twitter (now known as X) and Facebook barred Trump from using their platforms due to his incitement of the January 6, 2021, US Capitol attack. Both networks have recently reinstated Trump’s account, albeit he publishes nearly exclusively on Truth Social.

Trump reportedly told a South Carolina audience that he purchased the name of his app for $2,100 from “a guy.”

“I would’ve paid millions,” Trump declared to the audience.

Some conservatives, seeking an alternative to mainstream social media sites seen to be antagonistic to their viewpoint, appeared keen to join Truth Social at first. According to a 2021 survey, three out of every five Republicans planned to use the new website.

“Get ready!” Trump wrote in his first Truth Social post. “Your favorite president will see you soon.”

However, the app’s buzz much exceeded its actual usage. According to Pew Research, only 2% of Americans reported routinely using Truth Social to acquire their news three months after its introduction, which is consistent with other niche conservative social media alternatives such as Gettr and Rumble.

The app’s popularity has plummeted since its early days. According to Similarweb data provided to CNN earlier this month, the site’s monthly active users on iOS and Android devices are down 39% year on year. Mobile and desktop visits to the site have also dropped by roughly 29% within the same time period.

The app itself could be clearer but has various technical issues. It went down during President Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech when Trump promised to provide live commentary.

CNN sought to contact Truth Social for comment using an email address on its website. The email bounced back.

Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes, a former Republican congressman, said in a statement last month after US regulators approved the merger: “Moving forward, we aim to accelerate our work to build a free speech highway outside the stifling stranglehold of Big Tech.”

Truth Social Made Trump Richer And Gave Him A New Megaphone. But It’s Struggling As A Social Media Site

Trump claims Truth Social is “on fire,” as he puts it. He often promotes the app at rallies and in interviews. For example, Trump recently promoted Truth Social while explaining his post in support of in vitro fertilization procedures following an Alabama Supreme Court order that caused certain clinics to halt access to some IVF services in the state.

“The ultimate delight in life is a beautiful, healthy, magnificent baby,” Trump stated before adding, “I posted that message on a Truth Social website. Has anyone been tuning in recently? Hot. “Truth Social is hot.”

Many Republican officials and conservatives haven’t joined Truth Social or only post sporadically. Virginia’s governor, Glenn Youngkin, was last in office in July 2022. Popular conservative podcast hosts Megyn Kelly, Ben Shapiro, and Glenn Beck do not appear to have active accounts. South Carolina Senator Tim Scott joined Truth Social as his name arose as a prospective running mate for Trump.

Even many who have adopted Truth Social, including members of Trump’s inner circle, continue to use competitor services.

“His surrogates are extremely active on X. They’re active on other platforms,” said Matt Terrill, director of staff for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s 2016 presidential campaign, who is also an avid social media user. “It’s a recognition that is where a lot of people are getting their news.”

To his admirers, the initiative demonstrates Trump’s business ability, which he established during his career in real estate and as a reality television celebrity.

“It’s brilliant because just the fact that we’re having this conversation right now is impressive,” Paul Leslie, a writer who attended Trump’s Georgia rally, told CNN. “You start your own social media platform, and then people say, ‘Oh, you’re not on Twitter.'” It’s just another source of press, and as everybody can see, Donald Trump is the most brilliant public relations genius ever.”

Truth Social Made Trump Richer And Gave Him A New Megaphone. But It’s Struggling As A Social Media Site

On any given day, Trump will post dozens of times on Truth Social, delivering a steady stream of comments on his legal difficulties, sharing positive poll figures, responding to negative media, and weighing in on current political debates.

Trump initially reacted to former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley’s withdrawal from the race on Truth Social.

On Friday alone, Trump attacked the judge and state attorney general in one of his legal cases, expressed support for Cuban protesters, endorsed an Arizona state Senate candidate, shared eight videos of himself speaking directly to the camera, and suggested he has enough money to cover a $464 million civil fraud judgment in New York — a potentially troubling admission for his lawyers.

The posts mirror Trump’s previous social media usage – and style; he frequently posts in all caps – but with a fraction of the reach. Trump has 87 million followers on X, the platform once known as Twitter and now controlled by billionaire Elon Musk, which is 13 times his reach on Truth Social.

Trump recently acknowledged this phenomenon after Jimmy Kimmel mocked the previous president’s comments about his performance hosting the Academy Awards.

“He winds up reading my truth. “E (sic) said this guy is even dumber than I thought,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “It went viral. It’s spread over the world today, and all he had to do was keep his mouth shut.”

Even some of his followers miss the days when Trump’s posts were more widely distributed.

“Trump would tweet, and everyone was offended,” Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene stated at a recent Trump event. “I tell you what, I’d give everything for some classic Trump tweets. Hello, you may find him on Truth Social. “You know where he is.”

SOURCE – (CNN)