A former US ambassador wants Google to do Telegram what it did to Parler.
Telegram, especially after the death of George Floyd and the inauguration of Joe Biden as president, has been used to threaten, encourage and coordinate racist violence, says Ginsberg, who was Bill Clinton’s ambassador to Morocco. He pointed out that after the January 6 riot at the United States Capitol, Google suspended
“Google has not taken any action against Telegram comparable to the action it took against Parler to compel Telegram to improve its content moderation policies,” says the Ginsberg lawsuit. He filed a similar complaint on January 17 against Apple Inc., which also removed Parler from his app store after the turmoil.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent via email. Telegram also did not immediately respond to an email asking for comment. Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram,
‘Parler Refugees’
A channel on Telegram is dedicated to “Parler refugees”. Some Telegram users have asked followers to abandon plans for a second Washington protest in support of Trump in favor of surprise attacks across the country, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit also accuses Telegram of serving as a platform for the sale of illegal and controlled substances, including LSD and cocaine.
Ginsberg, who is Jewish and raised in Israel, says in the lawsuit that he was the target of two assassination attempts due to his religious beliefs. Your Coalition for a Safer Network , also listed as a plaintiff in the lawsuit, says he pressures social media platforms to end their tolerance for anti-Semitism and allow extremist groups.
(Updates with similar lawsuit against Apple in the fourth paragraph. )
