Apple CEO Tim Cook defends the removal of Parler from his company’s App Store, saying he does not see a “cross” between the right to freedom of speech and the ability to provoke violence.
Apple and Google have launched the conservative website’s social media site and Amazon – Web Services downloaded Parler from its servers – following the violent riots on the US Capitol on January 6 that led to the deaths of five people, including a police officer
“We looked at the incitement to violence that was there. And we do not consider free speech and incitement to violence a crossroads, “Cook told host Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday.
Cook said there are more than 2 million apps in the App Store and they are all expected to meet the Terms of Service.
‘Of course we do not control what is on the internet, but we have never seen our platform be a simple version of the internet. We have rules and regulations and we just ask people to stick to them, ‘Apple’s top manager said in an interview aired Sunday.
Asked by Wallace whether removing Parler from Apple would drive users deeper into the ground, Cook said that did not have to be the case.
“It simply came to our notice then. And if they get their moderation together, they will be there again, ”he said.
After Twitter and a number of other Big Tech platforms banned President Trump over his comments following the chaos at the Capitol, many of his supporters flocked to Parler, which has fewer content restrictions.
Parler CEO John Martze has sued Amazon for violating U.S. antitrust laws for removing the social media business from its servers.
He said he and his family hid due to death threats and constant harassment.