+++dropcapnnWhen we last [checked in](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/donald-trump-truth-social-failure){: target=”_blank”} with Truth Social, the alternative social media network launched by **Donald Trump** after he was [booted](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/01/twitter-finally-muzzling-trump-is-too-little-too-late){: target=”_blank”} from Twitter and temporarily Facebook for inciting a violent insurrection, things were not going great.The February rollout had been [a predictable shitshow](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/02/donald-trump-social-app-launch){: target=”_blank”}, as would-be users were hit with numerous glitches, ridiculously long wait times, and, in many cases, a message that they’d been placed on a wait list that appeared to be more than 100,000 people long.SimilarWeb, which provides website data analysis, had [estimated](https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trump-cant-stop-whining-about-his-failing-social-media-app-truth-social){: target=”_blank”} that the average visitor to the site spent only 90 seconds there, compared to the seven and nine minutes users spent on conservative networks Gettr and Gab, respectively, The Daily Beast reported.Trump himself, a former Twitter obsessive who’d once sent [200 tweets and retweets](https://www.insider.com/trump-breaks-record-most-tweets-in-a-single-day-2020-6){: target=”_blank”} in a single day, had posted just once since the launch, [telling followers](https://www.mediaite.com/politics/trump-is-still-not-using-his-own-social-media-app-a-full-month-after-its-launch/){: target=”_blank”}, “Your favorite President will see you soon\!”nn+++nnGiven that Trump ascended to the White House in part based on the lie that he was an extremely successful businessman, many people are undoubtedly curious if he and the Truth Social team have been able to turn things around.
And it appears that the answer is: Not at all\! In fact, things have gotten worse.nnFor starters, as of last week, “daily active users” were clocking in at 513,000, compared to Twitter’s roughly 217 million visitors, [according to The Daily Beast](https://www.thedailybeast.com/trumps-truth-social-is-doing-even-worse-than-you-thought?ref=home){: target=”_blank”}.(Here, it’s relevant to note that Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind Truth Social, claimed that it would not only disrupt social media networks, but “Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google” as well, according to a [pitch deck obtained by Insider](https://www.insider.com/trump-pitch-deck-claims-build-rivals-cnn-netflix-truth-social-2021-10){: target=”_blank”} in October.) The Daily Beast, citing data shared by the analytics firm Apptopia, also reports that Truth Social downloads “have plummeted from a peak of 170,000 downloads a day to just 8,000 now,” and that the app is only the 355th most popular app on Apple devices.And users who have added it to their phones or tablets aren‘t thrilled with the results.“I’ve been waiting for this.
It’s finally released, and it doesn’t work,” reads one AppStore review first cited by The Daily Beast.Says another: “Links broken everywhere.Tried to delete my account and it says FORBIDDEN.Then tried to change password and it says that page doesn’t exist.Another Trumpy failed business venture.” As reporter **Asawin Suebsaeng** [put it](https://twitter.com/swin24/status/1510971441096892417){: target=”_blank”} on Monday, “It is wild Truth Social…is eating shit this hard at this stage in the game, given the big $$$, political celebrity, & infrastructure behind it.”nnAnd customers aren’t the only ones frustrated with the site.**Josh Adams** and **Billy Boozer,** the company’s chief of technology and chief of product development, respectively, who “joined the venture last year and quickly became central players in its bid to build a social-media empire,” have both resigned from their positions less than a year after joining, Reuters [reports](https://www.reuters.com/technology/exclusive-two-key-tech-execs-quit-truth-social-after-troubled-app-launch-2022-04-04/){: target=”_blank”}.
Incredibly, despite what a total disaster Truth Social has been thus far, insiders believe the two men were apparently the one thing keeping the site from bombing even further, from “total disaster” to scrap heap of corporate history.“If Josh has left…all bets are off,” a source told Reuters of Adams, describing him as the “brains” behind the app’s technology.Another source told the outlet that Boozer played a crucial leadership role at the company.(Boozer declined Reuters’ request for comment and Adams did not respond.) Incidentally, it appears that the two were professionally successful before joining the ex-president’s venture.Adams cofounded a product and software consulting firm that counted the U.S.Patent and Trademark Office, the FBI, and e-commerce company Shipt among its clients, according to Reuters.A source told Reuters that Boozer “had collaborated frequently with Adams before joining Truth Social.”nnAs both The Daily Beast and Reuters note, Trump Media & Technology Group CEO **Devin Nunes,** who [left his job in Congress](https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/06/gop-rep-devin-nunes-resigns-from-congress-to-become-ceo-of-trumps-media-company.html){: target=”_blank”} to run this thing, had [said](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/feb/20/trump-truth-social-app-fully-operational-march-devin-nunes){: target=”_blank”} he expected the network would be “fully operational” in the U.S.
by last Thursday, a goal he did not meet.Truth Social also still does not have an app for Android users, despite Android phones making up “[more than 40% of the U.S.market](https://www.reuters.com/technology/exclusive-two-key-tech-execs-quit-truth-social-after-troubled-app-launch-2022-04-04/){: target=”_blank”},” Reuters reports.nnAnd then there’s the financial side of things.
Which, as you might have guessed, isn’t going swimmingly, either\! Per [Axios](https://www.axios.com/truth-social-trump-waitlist-launch-b120a8ef-cffa-4512-9d30-f10b412b3cc1.html){: target=”_blank”}:nn> Trump fans flooded into a SPAC [special purpose acquisition company] that agreed to take Truth Social public and could lose their investments if the app doesn’t get its act together.The SPAC is said to be under federal investigation and Thursday missed a filing deadline because of what it said were accounting delays.Shares of that SPAC are down 35% since March 4, and down 64% from their all-time high, including a 2% dip on Friday.nnAs for Trump, he has yet to post a follow-up to his initial “truth” telling users to get excited to see more of him.Followers hanging on his every word will probably be hanging on a lot longer: According to a source who spoke to The Daily Beast, the former president wants the app “to be a hit” before he starts engaging.nnAs The Daily Beast [reported](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/donald-trump-truth-social-failure){: target=”_blank”} last month, sources have heard Trump “swearing gratuitously” about the app on the phone, asking, “What the fuck is going on” with the social network, and regularly complaining about the bad press and disappointing optics of the rollout.While the former president has a long list of business failures under his belt—lookin’ at you, [Trump Steaks, Trump Shuttle, Trump Mortgage, and Trump Taj Mahal](https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/celebrity/article/3107285/donald-trumps-biggest-business-fails-casinos-steaks-6){: target=”_blank”}—most of them crashed and burned before the rise of social media, and prior to him playing the part of a successful businessman on TV, where he was able to convince millions of people he actually knew what he was doing.So this one has got to hurt.nn*If you would like to receive the Levin Report in your inbox daily, click* [*here*](https://www.vanityfair.com/newsletter/the-levin-report?itm_content=inline&itm_campaign=levin-report-article-signup){: target=”_blank”} *to subscribe.*nn\n**Joe Biden demands Vladimir** **Putin be tried for war crimes**nnThat seems appropriate given that Russia appears to be committing genocide.
Per [Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/world/biden-says-putin-is-war-criminal-calls-war-crimes-trial-2022-04-04/){: target=”_blank”}:nn> The discovery of a mass grave and tied bodies shot at close range in Bucha, outside Kyiv, a town Ukrainian forces reclaimed from Russian troops, looked set to galvanize the United States and Europe into imposing additional sanctions against Moscow.“We have to gather the information.
We have to continue to provide Ukraine with the weapons they need to continue the fight.And we have to get all the detail so this can be an actual, have a war crimes trial,” Biden said.n> n> Putin “is brutal.And what’s happening in Bucha is outrageous, and everyone’s seen it,” Biden said as his United Nations envoy announced Washington would seek Russia’s suspension from the U.N.
Human Rights Council….
Ukrainian president **Volodymyr Zelenskyy** called the killings “genocide” in a speech from Bucha on Monday as journalists entered the city and documented its destruction.nnIn a statement, Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman **Bob Menendez** said, “Putin must be held accountable for this tragic and barbaric assault on innocent civilians.”nn**Elsewhere\!**nnIn the Kyiv Suburb of Bucha, “They Shot Everyone They Saw” ([*NYT*](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/03/world/europe/ukraine-russia-war-civilian-deaths.html){: target=”_blank”})nnBiden reportedly says **Rupert Murdoch** is the most dangerous man in the world ([*V.F*](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/04/biden-rupert-murdoch-most-dangerous-man){: target=”_blank”}*.*)nnPutin ally’s superyacht seized in Spain on U.S.warrant ([Politico](https://www.politico.com/news/2022/04/04/russian-oligarch-superyacht-seized-00022731){: target=”_blank”})nn**Elon Musk** thumbs his nose at the SEC again with Twitter stake ([CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/04/elon-musk-thumbs-his-nose-at-the-sec-again-with-twitter-stake.html){: target=”_blank”})nn“It’s now or never”: World’s top climate scientists issue ultimatum on critical temperature limit ([CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/04/ipcc-report-climate-scientists-issue-ultimatum-on-1point5-degrees-goal.html){: target=”_blank”})nnHow Trump allies are pushing to hand-count ballots around the U.S.([*Washington Post*](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/04/04/trump-hand-counted-ballots-dominion-machines/){: target=”_blank”})nnSupreme Court makes it easier to sue police over wrongful arrests ([*Washington Post*](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/04/04/supreme-court-police-lawsuits/){: target=”_blank”})nn**Tom Brady** joins firm launched by disgraced P.R.guru **Declan Kelly** ([*F.T*](https://www.ft.com/content/8ffb95c8-d423-40c7-be90-560835af2ce1){: target=”_blank”}*.*)nnBidens to host White House wedding reception for granddaughter in November ([CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/04/politics/naomi-biden-white-house-wedding-reception/index.html){: target=”_blank”})nnMan in Germany gets 90 COVID-19 shots to sell forged passes ([AP](https://apnews.com/article/covid-health-germany-europe-document-forgery-120b2c4db8aa71ffeadf766a9829910b){: target=”_blank”})nn### **More Great Stories From** ***Vanity Fair*** n— Fox News Hosts Entertained [Putin-Friendly Talking Points.](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/fox-news-hosts-putin-ukraine?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122) Then Their Colleagues Were Killed in Ukraine\n— The Life and Confessions of [Mob Chef David Ruggerio](https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2022/03/the-life-and-confessions-of-mob-chef-david-ruggerio?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122)\n— Kremlin Keeps Blurring Its [Red Line Around Nuclear War](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/the-threat-is-increasing-russia-blurs-red-line-nuclear-weapons-ukraine?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122)\n— Calls for Recusals, Resignations, and Even Impeachment: Democrats Escalate [Ethics Campaign Around Clarence Thomas](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/democrats-call-for-clarence-thomas-impeachment-resignation-recusal-january-6?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122)\n— Two Ukrainian AP Journalists Capture [the Most Devastating Moments of War](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/ukrainian-ap-journalists-capture-the-most-devastating-moments-of-war?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122)\n— Trump: If I Was President I’d Threaten to [Drop a Nuclear Bomb on Russia](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/donald-trump-russia-nuclear-submarines?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122)\n— [What Will Dems Do](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/what-will-dems-do-if-biden-doesnt-run?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122) If Biden Doesn’t Run?\n— [Orgies, Beheadings, Jewish Space Lasers:](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/madison-cawthorn-kevin-mccarthy-orgies-coke?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122) Everything Kevin McCarthy Has Had to “Speak” to Republican Lawmakers About\n— The Truth Behind Republicans’ [Vile Questioning of Ketanji Brown Jackson](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/the-truth-behind-republicans-vile-questioning-of-ketanji-brown-jackson?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122)\n— From the Archive: [Molly Bloom’s House of Cards](https://archive.vanityfair.com/article/2014/7/1/her-house-of-cards?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-040122)\n— Not a subscriber? [Join *Vanity Fair*](https://subscribe.vanityfair.com/subscribe/splits/vanityfair/VYF_SELF?source=HCL_VYF_GENERAL_LINK_0) to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now.nn.