As many social networks such as Twitter and Facebook blocked the accounts of President Donald Trump, for non-compliance with the principles of platforms and incitement to violence, another platform was put in the spotlight, Parler, which was blocked by Google, Amazon and Apple.
Parler functions as a micro-blog and has a substantial base of supporters of Donald Trump, conservatives, people who support conspiracy theories, and right-wing extremists. Parler posts often have extreme content, discrimination against Jews, and conspiracy theories like QAnon .
One of the founders of Parler, John Matze, a conservative programmer said in 2018 that Parler is "driven by free speech." Users can post "without fear of their views", according to the social network, although criminal activities are not allowed and messages for advertising, fraud, etc.
By these principles, the Parler app was placed on the list of most downloaded apps on Google and Apple for 2020. Its users reached up to 8 million out of 4.5 million amid election turmoil in the US, while activity was 20 times greater than before.
Parler has less control and balance for dangerous content compared to Twitter, which is trying to block accounts claiming there is misinformation and encouragement of violence.
Amazon gave on Sunday said it would terminate Parler from its online service for violating the guidelines. Amazon’s move came two days after Google and Apple dropped the app.
"For us to distribute an application through Google Play, we require applications to implement strong moderation for dangerous content," Google said in a statement. Apple cited "content that threatens the well-being of others or is intended to incite violence or other unlawful acts" as the reason for Parler's suspension.
Following the decisions of tech giants, founder John Matze said: "We will not dedicate ourselves to politically motivated companies and authoritarians who hate free speech!"
Burimet: Euronews, Guardian, USA Today
