This photo shows Parler’s social media application logo displayed on a smartphone with his website in the background on July 2, 2020. (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY / AFP via Getty Images)
TO Newsroom
UPDATED 06:57 PT – Saturday, January 9, 2021
A social networking service, known as Parler, is facing a lot of pressure from big tech companies to bolster its content moderation.
On Friday, Google and Apple both expelled Parler from their app stores, claiming that some of the political posts on the platform should be violently incited and regulated. A Google spokesman said the suspension would remain until developers submitted a detailed plan for content moderation and what he called a ‘public threat to public safety’.
The company noted that the measure would not affect Parler’s availability on the Internet, nor would it remove the app from existing users’ devices.
Meanwhile, Apple has taken a more aggressive approach, giving Parler 24 hours to improve content modification or remove it from the app store indefinitely.
Now Apple and Google are threatening to ban Parler from blocking people from going to any alternative platform.
They create a monopoly. They want NO IDEAS or CONVERSATIONS that they can not control.
They do not want conservatives to communicate with each other.
– Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) 9 January 2021
Although Parler was founded in 2018, it recently made a name for itself as the alternative to social media for those banned or silenced on major social media sites like Twitter and Facebook.
Parler is not a “Right wing” app, but protects the freedom of speech. This is neutral.
This is what our digital rulers are so concerned about: free expression. Democrats can not allow a place to share ideas without their thumbs up on the scale.
It’s worth asking why
– Buck Sexton (@BuckSexton) 9 January 2021
Some notable users include Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Who turned to the platform earlier this year after their voices were largely silenced elsewhere.
Amid the recent ban, many people agree that Silicon Valley has gone too far.
“We can not just recall someone’s voice because we do not agree with what they say,” said Professor Monica Stephens, University of Buffalo.
Despite the threats, Parler CEO John Matze stands firm and assures that he will not meet Apple and Google’s demands. He then accused the businesses of applying Parler standards that they did not apply to their own services.
He added that America “has already lost if speech is restricted or censored to keep the country safe.”