Difference between revisions of "Parler"
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| − | == | + | == Introduction == |
Parler is an American alt-right social media platform founded in 2018. Although it labels itself as an 'un-biased' social media platform, it's audience mainly consists of conservatives, conspiracy theorists, and those on the far right. | Parler is an American alt-right social media platform founded in 2018. Although it labels itself as an 'un-biased' social media platform, it's audience mainly consists of conservatives, conspiracy theorists, and those on the far right. | ||
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Parler has recently been a hot topic of discussion for several news outlets, as reports have come out with evidence that it harbored several coordinators of the 2021 riots on the United States capitol. Media personalities, such as Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, and Laura Loomer are active on the site, as well as conservative politicians such as Senator Ted Cruz and Congressman Devin Nunes. | Parler has recently been a hot topic of discussion for several news outlets, as reports have come out with evidence that it harbored several coordinators of the 2021 riots on the United States capitol. Media personalities, such as Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, and Laura Loomer are active on the site, as well as conservative politicians such as Senator Ted Cruz and Congressman Devin Nunes. | ||
| − | == | + | == History == |
Parler was founded by John Matze Jr., and Jared Thomson, both University of Denver computer science alumni, and former college roommates, alongside Rebekah Mercer in August 2018. The company is headquartered in Handerson, Nevada. In 2018, it launched on both Android and Apple devices, as well as was the most download app of the year. | Parler was founded by John Matze Jr., and Jared Thomson, both University of Denver computer science alumni, and former college roommates, alongside Rebekah Mercer in August 2018. The company is headquartered in Handerson, Nevada. In 2018, it launched on both Android and Apple devices, as well as was the most download app of the year. | ||
Parler was developed as a response to the increased moderation of accounts on more widely used social media platforms. The mission of the app, as told by its leaders, is to offer an uncensored, and free-speech alternative to current tech giants, mainly Twitter and Facebook. | Parler was developed as a response to the increased moderation of accounts on more widely used social media platforms. The mission of the app, as told by its leaders, is to offer an uncensored, and free-speech alternative to current tech giants, mainly Twitter and Facebook. | ||
The name of the platform comes from the French word parlay, meaning ‘to speak’ , but has since been changed to be pronounced as ‘parlor’. | The name of the platform comes from the French word parlay, meaning ‘to speak’ , but has since been changed to be pronounced as ‘parlor’. | ||
| − | == | + | == User base == |
i. Audience | i. Audience | ||
A significant portion of Parler’s user base consists of far-right extremists, conspiracy theorists, and high-profile conservative Republican commentators, media personalities, and politicians. Many of these higher-profile users came onto the Parler platform after losing their accounts on larger social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, due to violations to the platforms’ terms of service. | A significant portion of Parler’s user base consists of far-right extremists, conspiracy theorists, and high-profile conservative Republican commentators, media personalities, and politicians. Many of these higher-profile users came onto the Parler platform after losing their accounts on larger social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, due to violations to the platforms’ terms of service. | ||
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The third growth spot Parler had was in November of 2020, in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. This was the most drastic increase in users of the three- registering up to 7029 new users by the minute. Just in the week leading up to Election Day, the app was downloaded around one million times. Around this time, many mainstream news outlets began to give heavy coverage to the platform. This was due to conspiracy theories such as QAnon, child trafficking, and the Stop the Steal conspiracy. Additionally, growth can be attributed to the nature of the app as an “echo-chamber,” where misinformation spreads profusely. | The third growth spot Parler had was in November of 2020, in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. This was the most drastic increase in users of the three- registering up to 7029 new users by the minute. Just in the week leading up to Election Day, the app was downloaded around one million times. Around this time, many mainstream news outlets began to give heavy coverage to the platform. This was due to conspiracy theories such as QAnon, child trafficking, and the Stop the Steal conspiracy. Additionally, growth can be attributed to the nature of the app as an “echo-chamber,” where misinformation spreads profusely. | ||
| − | == | + | == Content == |
| − | == | + | == Insurrection == |
| − | == | + | == Removal of Parler from app stores == |
Revision as of 11:31, 12 March 2021
Contents
Introduction
Parler is an American alt-right social media platform founded in 2018. Although it labels itself as an 'un-biased' social media platform, it's audience mainly consists of conservatives, conspiracy theorists, and those on the far right.
Parler has recently been a hot topic of discussion for several news outlets, as reports have come out with evidence that it harbored several coordinators of the 2021 riots on the United States capitol. Media personalities, such as Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, and Laura Loomer are active on the site, as well as conservative politicians such as Senator Ted Cruz and Congressman Devin Nunes.
History
Parler was founded by John Matze Jr., and Jared Thomson, both University of Denver computer science alumni, and former college roommates, alongside Rebekah Mercer in August 2018. The company is headquartered in Handerson, Nevada. In 2018, it launched on both Android and Apple devices, as well as was the most download app of the year. Parler was developed as a response to the increased moderation of accounts on more widely used social media platforms. The mission of the app, as told by its leaders, is to offer an uncensored, and free-speech alternative to current tech giants, mainly Twitter and Facebook. The name of the platform comes from the French word parlay, meaning ‘to speak’ , but has since been changed to be pronounced as ‘parlor’.
User base
i. Audience A significant portion of Parler’s user base consists of far-right extremists, conspiracy theorists, and high-profile conservative Republican commentators, media personalities, and politicians. Many of these higher-profile users came onto the Parler platform after losing their accounts on larger social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, due to violations to the platforms’ terms of service.
i. Platform growth Over time, Parler has had three major jumps in growth, the first being in June 2019, then June 2020, and lastly in November 2020. In June 2019, there was a growth of 200,00 users from Saudi Arabia(Reuters). This was suspected to be in response to the suspension of six Twitter accounts from Saudi Arabia, one of which being a large news outlet. This large spike in Parler’s user base consisted on several Saudi nationalist accounts, as well as ordinary individuals from Saudi Arabia. In June 2020, Parler’s downloads also rose exponentially, from 1,700 downloads at the beginning of the month, to 143,00 towards the end. During June and July of 2020, Parler rose to the top of the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. The third growth spot Parler had was in November of 2020, in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. This was the most drastic increase in users of the three- registering up to 7029 new users by the minute. Just in the week leading up to Election Day, the app was downloaded around one million times. Around this time, many mainstream news outlets began to give heavy coverage to the platform. This was due to conspiracy theories such as QAnon, child trafficking, and the Stop the Steal conspiracy. Additionally, growth can be attributed to the nature of the app as an “echo-chamber,” where misinformation spreads profusely.
