CNET: Parler is back on Apple’s App Store. “Conservative social media service Parler is once again available on Apple’s iOS App Store after being after being taken down following the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol. The updated version of the app includes ‘enhanced threat and incitement reporting tools,’ according to its App Store listing.”
BBC: Parler set to return to Apple’s App Store. “Apple is to allow the controversial social media app Parler, a popular platform with far-right supporters, back onto its App Store. The app was pulled following the deadly US Capitol riots on 6 January. In a letter to two Republican lawmakers on Monday, Apple said Parler had made updates to its app and content moderation policy that would lead to it being reinstated.”
Mashable: Parler is trying to throw Facebook under the bus for the U.S. Capitol riots. “In early February, the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform asked social media platform Parler to produce information regarding its finances and potential ties to foreign entities. The request came in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, which allegedly involved numerous Parler users. Now Parler has responded, mounting a defense that essentially boils down to: ‘We aren’t bad because Facebook is worse.’”
CNET: Apple said to deny Parler app back into App Store. “Apple has reportedly told the social network Parler that it still can’t publish its app in the iPhone and iPad App Store. Apple banned the controversial social network, which is popular with extremists and conspiracy theorists, after insurrectionists attacked the US Capitol on Jan. 6.”
CNET: Parler files new suit against Amazon alleging defamation, breach of contract. “Parler has voluntarily dismissed its hosting lawsuit against Amazon, but the alternative social network isn’t done with its fight. Parler on Tuesday filed a new lawsuit against Amazon, alleging defamation and breach of contract.”
CNN: Parler comes back online one month after going dark . “Parler, the social network favored by conservatives, came back online Monday with a redesigned website one month after it was suspended by Amazon Web Services and effectively driven offline.”
The Verge: House leader calls for FBI investigation into Parler. “In a letter sent to FBI Director Christopher Wray, House Oversight Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) called for the bureau to ‘conduct a robust examination of the role that the social media site Parler played’ in the January 6th pro-Trump assault on the Capitol. Maloney said that the committee intends to open its own investigation and requested a meeting with FBI officials regarding the status and scope of any future investigation into the social media platform.”
The Guardian: Parler website partially returns with support from Russian-owned technology firm . “On Monday, Parler’s website was reachable again, though only with a message from its chief executive, John Matze, saying he was working to restore functionality. The internet protocol (IP) address it used is owned by DDos-Guard, which is controlled by two Russian men and provides services including protection from distributed denial of service attacks, infrastructure expert Ronald Guilmette told Reuters.”
CNET: Parler vows to return after Amazon pulls hosting amid concerns over violent posts. “Parler CEO John Matze posted a message to the company’s website over the weekend, promising the Twitter alternative would return after it went dark when Amazon cut off hosting services.”
Techdirt: A Few More Thoughts On The Total Deplatforming Of Parler & Infrastructure Content Moderation. “I’ve delayed writing deeper thoughts on the total deplatforming of Parler, in part because there was so much else happening (including some more timely posts about Parler’s lawsuit regarding it), but more importantly because for years I’ve been calling for people to think more deeply about content moderation at the infrastructure layer, rather than at the edge. Because those issues are much more complicated than the usual content moderation debates.”
Motherboard: Developer Makes Interactive Map of Parler Videos From Capitol Hill Riots. “A developer calling themselves Patr10tic has taken archived versions of videos uploaded by Parler users during the deadly Capitol Hill siege, geolocated them, reuploaded them, and placed them on an interactive map for anybody to watch. The beta project nicknamed ‘Y’all Qaeda’ is one of the first to present posts and videos from the archived Parler data that was saved by a hacker and a team of archivists. So far, most reporting and projects have relied on metadata alone.”
NBC News: Google Play suspends Parler until app develops moderation policies. “Google suspended the social media platform Parler on Friday from its Google Play app store until the ‘Twitter for conservatives’ adopts content moderation policies following the attack on the U.S. Capitol by a mob of President Donald Trump supporters.” Parler also faces imminent expulsion from Apple’s app store unless it develops moderation policies sufficient for Apple.
New York Times: The storming of Capitol Hill was organized on social media.. “Just after 1 p.m., when President Trump ended his speech to protesters in Washington by calling for them to march on Congress, hundreds of echoing calls to storm the building were made by his supporters online. On social media sites used by the far-right, such as Gab and Parler, directions on which streets to take to avoid the police and which tools to bring to help pry open doors were exchanged in comments. At least a dozen people posted about carrying guns into the halls of Congress.”
