The RecordExhibit 140
Selling first access to the president's announcements for $100,000 a month
Pending means: In court or under criminal investigation right now.
On Aug. 1, 2026, Trump Media began selling a service that delivers Trump's Truth Social posts to paying customers the instant they appear, for $100,000 a month, or $60,000 a month on a three-year contract. Trump announces policy there, often moving markets, and two news organizations have sued, saying he remains the sole beneficiary of the trust that holds his shares in the company.
What happened
The Truth API also carries posts from the White House, Vice President JD Vance, FBI Director Kash Patel, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and other officials. Trump Media's chief executive, Kevin McGurn, told investors on Aug. 10 that more than 10 customers had signed up at $60,000 to $100,000 a month, according to the complaint, which quotes him calling the content the most market moving available.
The Intercept and the Freedom of the Press Foundation sued on Aug. 12, 2026 in federal court in Manhattan, naming Trump in his official capacity, deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino, Trump's executive assistant Natalie Harp, the Executive Office of the President and the White House Office; Trump Media is not a defendant.
They argue that posting official government information to a platform that gives paying customers faster access than the press and the public violates the First and Fifth Amendments, that the arrangement is corrupt because it uses the presidency to enrich the president's company, and that the company's plan to restrict scraping of posts threatens the records news organizations keep of posts Trump later edits or deletes.
Before taking office Trump moved his Trump Media shares into a trust controlled by his son Donald Trump Jr.; the plaintiffs say he is still its sole beneficiary. They ask the court to declare the practice unconstitutional and to bar Trump from making initial public announcements on Truth Social while the paid service exists.
Where it stands
Pending. On Oct. 7, 2026, U.S. District Judge Paul Oetken in Manhattan heard arguments and said he would rule in writing later. He called the speed advantage negligible for a human reader, since the service is faster by fractions of a second, but acknowledged that it creates two classes of people, and questioned whether a court can tell a president how to communicate. No ruling has been issued.
The administration's side
The Justice Department argues that the paid service was a completely private commercial decision by Trump Media, not an act of the president, that the company is not a party to the case, and that presidents have always chosen their own channels, citing Franklin Roosevelt's radio addresses and John F. Kennedy's use of television; a government lawyer noted that a radio also cost money. Neither the White House nor Trump Media responded to TheWrap's request for comment when the suit was filed.
Sources
Permanent link: https://unredactedrecord.com/e/truthapi/