Parler, the social network focused on “freedom of expression” that has attracted many right-wing and extremist voices, remains offline several days after the company’s board canceled its CEO. The site remains in the news, however, as a BuzzFeed News The report cites documents that apparently show negotiations between the Trump Organization and Parler over an agreement to make the site their main social network.
Although the former president used Twitter directly and his campaign relied heavily on Facebook during the two presidential elections, he never officially joined Parler. It was not clear why he did not take his talents to a more friendly environment, even after being deplored by the main social networks and admitting to negotiations with other sites, but this can fill some of these gaps.
Although the BuzzFeed report does not reveal Trump’s direct involvement, the documents they saw show Parler offering a 40% stake in the company if he posted content on his platform hours before others. The negotiations were said to have taken place last summer, during the campaign, and again in November, after the president lost his re-election attempt.
Former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale is quoted as saying that the president was not involved in the discussions, however, cited legal experts say that if that had happened, taking a shareholding in exchange for exclusivity could have violated the anti-bribery laws.