What’s happening: Parler, a site that bills itself as a “free speech social network” and that was widely used to coordinate the storming of the Capitol last week, has gone offline after Amazon stopped hosting it on Sunday night, citing violations of the terms of service.
Why?: BuzzFeed obtained a copy of the email from Amazon informing Parler of the decision. It said: “Recently, we’ve seen a steady increase in this violent content on your website, all of which violates our terms. It’s clear that Parler does not have an effective process to comply with the AWS terms of service.” Parler had come under mounting pressure over the weekend as Google and then Apple pulled its app from their app stores over its role as a platform used to plan violent, illegal acts and its reluctance to moderate the site more stringently.
About Parler: Parler launched in 2018 as a virtually unmoderated version of Facebook and Twitter. It was originally a fringe website but has seen user numbers grow rapidly in recent weeks after Biden’s election win. Its chief investor is right-wing megadonor Rebekah Mercer. It has become a safe haven for hate group members, conspiracists, and people who have been banned elsewhere online. Violence is regularly discussed openly. For example, conversations on Parler have called for Vice President Mike Pence to be executed.
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