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Ex-Trump Adviser Jason Miller Says New Social App Gettr Is Backed by Foundation Tied to Guo Wengui

Political operative says his free-speech-focused platform has secured financial support from entity close to fugitive Chinese businessman

By Keach Hagey and Brian Spegele
July 2, 2021 12:12 am ET
https://www.wsj.com/articles/ex-trump-adviser-jason-miller-new-social-app-gettr-backed-by-guo-wengui-tied-foundation-11625199130

Former Trump adviser Jason Miller says a new, free-speech-focused social-media platform he is leading has received financial backing from a foundation tied to fugitive Chinese businessman Guo Wengui.

Called Gettr—a portmanteau of “getting together”—the Twitter -like platform appeared in app stores last month and will formally launch on July 4, Mr. Miller said.

Mr. Miller, who recently left Mr. Trump’s office to serve as chief executive of the venture, said Gettr—registered in Delaware and headquartered in New York—was backed by international investors that include “the Guo family foundation.” He added Mr. Guo doesn’t have a direct financial stake or direct role in Gettr, nor did he identify the foundation that made the investment.

The Wall Street Journal wasn’t able to independently identify the foundation, and Mr. Miller didn’t comment further on it.

‘I think a lot of people understand, with the United States, the desire for a new social-media platform that’s really founded on these principles of free speech, independent thought, rejecting censorship and cancel cultures.’
— Jason Miller, former Trump adviser

In an online video last week that was viewed by the Journal, Mr. Guo said he was an adviser to the social-media platform but wasn’t involved as a member of its management. An account under the name of Mr. Guo, an avowed critic of China’s Communist Party, that is marked as verified by Gettr indicates that it was set up in July 2021.

“We truly view this as a global platform,” Mr. Miller said. “I think a lot of people understand, with the United States, the desire for a new social-media platform that’s really founded on these principles of free speech, independent thought, rejecting censorship and cancel cultures.”

Mr. Miller declined to discuss finances or staff head count, but people familiar with the matter said that he has so far raised about $30 million and that the company employs more than 100 people.

The Daily Beast earlier reported Mr. Guo’s ties to Gettr.

A onetime property developer in Beijing, Mr. Guo has been wanted by China’s government for several years, for alleged crimes including money laundering and fraud. He has denied any wrongdoing and portrays himself as a global leader in fighting against China’s ruling Communist Party.

Mr. Guo has worked closely with former Trump political adviser Steve Bannon and is involved with other business ventures, including a website called GTV where Mr. Guo regularly broadcasts lengthy videos in Chinese for his supporters.

For months, Mr. Miller has led an effort to find a new social-media home for the former president after Mr. Trump was kicked off Twitter and Facebook following the Jan. 6 riot, when a mob of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol. Mr. Trump’s office took dozens of meetings with alternative social-media platforms in hopes of launching something by July 4, the Journal previously reported.

In those discussions, Mr. Trump expected to be paid in some way for the followers he would bring to any upstart social network, the Journal has reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Mr. Trump had nearly 89 million Twitter followers.

Mr. Miller said that Mr. Trump isn’t on Gettr but he hopes he will be someday soon. “We obviously are holding ‘realDonaldTrump’ for him. It’s up to him if he wants to join at some point. He has a number of different offers.”

A spokeswoman for Mr. Trump didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Although Gettr’s scrolling posts and verified accounts closely resemble Twitter’s, there are a number of features that set it apart, Mr. Miller said. Posts will be longer, up to 777 characters.

While any user can post videos up to three minutes long, social-media influencers, such as broadcasters, will be able to post segments up to 10 minutes long, he said. Users will be able to import their existing tweets as part of setting up their account. “People own their own tweets,” Mr. Miller said.

A Twitter spokeswoman declined to comment.

Later this year, Gettr is planning to roll out an “online appreciation” function that will let users donate to politicians directly, Mr. Miller said. Rather than advertising, Mr. Miller said the platform is looking to make money from e-commerce.

While billing itself as a free-speech app, Gettr bars threats, bullying, stalking, hate speech, harassment, sexually explicit content and a number of other behaviors. It will use a combination of human and artificial-intelligence moderators to police the platform, Mr. Miller said.

“We want to make sure that this is a marketplace of ideas, and people can feel free to express their ideas without the fear of being deplatformed,” he said. When it comes to “behavior that becomes illegal or threatening to other people,” he said, “we want to make sure that’s avoided.”


Write to Keach Hagey at [e-mail] and Brian Spegele at [e-mail]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/ex-trump-adviser-jason-miller-new-social-app-gettr-backed-by-guo-wengui-tied-foundation-11625199130