Removed from web hosting services in January, Parler is a favorite of conservatives who criticize ‘censorship’.
Parler, the social media platform popular with conservatives, is back online and ready to take on “big technology”, the company announced on Monday.
The platform was canceled by Amazon in January after the January 6 Capitol rebellion that tried to keep former President Donald Trump in power. Users were seen planning and celebrating the riot in Parler.
Amazon defended the move, citing calls for violence. Apple and Google also removed the app from their app stores.
“Parler, the world’s number 1 free speech social media platform with more than 20 million users, is announcing its official relaunch today, built on the basis of independent and sustainable technology and not dependent on the so-called ‘Big Tech’ for its operations, ”said the announcement.
“When Parler was taken down in January by those who want to silence tens of millions of Americans, our team came together, determined to keep our promise to our highly engaged community that we would be back stronger than ever,” Mark Meckler, interim CEO from Parler, said in the ad.
Meckler, a founder of the Tea Party Patriots movement who tried to push the Republican Party further to the right after the victory of former President Barack Obama in 2008, was named interim CEO for the re-launch.
– PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) February 15, 2021
Previous CEO John Matze was fired by the company’s board on January 29, according to Fox News.
Existing users will be able to use the site, while those who wish to create a new account will have to wait a week.
Conservative lawmakers used Parler’s deplatform and Trump’s permanent ban on Twitter after the riot as a call to arms against Silicon Valley giants like Twitter and Facebook and their “censorship” of conservative voices.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said at a news conference in early February “these platforms have changed from neutral platforms, which give Americans the freedom to speak to those responsible for their favorite narratives.”
Florida Republicans have announced that they will seek to force social media companies to inform users about actions taken against them, the option to exclude algorithms that choose certain content and to authorize the state attorney general to take action against companies that violate the State Law.
DeSantis has announced that it will support these efforts.
Screenshot of Parler.com website and message from former Parler CEO John Matze on January 16, 2021, reading ‘Hello world, is this connected?’, Seen in this photo taken on January 17, 2021, in social media [File: Screenshot via Reuters]
“According to our proposal, if a technology company deplores a candidate for an elected position in Florida during an election, the company will face a $ 100,000 daily fine until the candidate’s access to the platform is restored,” said DeSantis.