<s>
Parler	B-Application
(	O
pronounced	O
"	O
parlor	O
"	O
)	O
is	O
a	O
currently	O
inactive	O
American	O
alt-tech	O
social	O
networking	O
service	O
associated	O
with	O
conservatives	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Launched	O
in	O
August	O
2018	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
has	O
marketed	O
itself	O
as	O
a	O
free	O
speech-focused	O
and	O
unbiased	O
alternative	O
to	O
mainstream	O
social	O
networks	O
such	O
as	O
Twitter	B-Application
and	O
Facebook	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Journalists	O
have	O
described	O
Parler	B-Application
as	O
an	O
alt-tech	O
alternative	O
to	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
with	O
its	O
users	O
including	O
those	O
banned	O
from	O
mainstream	O
social	O
networks	O
or	O
who	O
oppose	O
their	O
moderation	O
policies	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
has	O
received	O
criticism	O
for	O
its	O
content	O
policies	O
,	O
which	O
some	O
journalists	O
and	O
users	O
argue	O
are	O
more	O
restrictive	O
than	O
the	O
company	O
portrays	O
and	O
sometimes	O
more	O
restrictive	O
than	O
those	O
of	O
its	O
competitors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Conservatives	O
have	O
praised	O
Parler	B-Application
as	O
offering	O
an	O
alternative	O
to	O
censorship	O
they	O
claim	O
to	O
endure	O
on	O
more	O
mainstream	O
platforms	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Facebook	B-Application
and	O
Twitter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
's	O
userbase	O
grew	O
exponentially	O
during	O
2020	O
with	O
minimal	O
content	O
moderation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
reports	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
was	O
used	O
to	O
coordinate	O
the	O
2021	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
U.S.	O
Capitol	O
,	O
several	O
companies	O
denied	O
it	O
their	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apple	O
and	O
Google	B-Application
removed	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
mobile	B-Application
app	I-Application
from	O
their	O
app	B-Application
stores	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Parler	B-Application
went	O
offline	O
on	O
January	O
10	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
when	O
Amazon	B-Application
Web	I-Application
Services	I-Application
canceled	O
its	O
hosting	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Before	O
it	O
went	O
offline	O
in	O
January	O
2021	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
the	O
service	O
had	O
about	O
15	O
million	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
called	O
the	O
removals	O
"	O
a	O
coordinated	O
attack	O
by	O
the	O
tech	O
giants	O
to	O
kill	O
competition	O
in	O
the	O
marketplace	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
resumed	O
service	O
on	O
February	O
15	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
after	O
moving	O
domain	O
registration	O
to	O
Epik	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
app	O
with	O
added	O
content	O
filters	O
was	O
released	O
on	O
the	O
Apple	B-Application
App	I-Application
Store	I-Application
on	O
May	O
17	O
,	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
returned	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
on	O
September	O
2	O
,	O
2022	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
was	O
acquired	O
by	O
digital	O
media	O
conglomerate	O
Starboard	O
on	O
April	O
14	O
,	O
2023	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
shut	O
down	O
on	O
the	O
same	O
day	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
was	O
founded	O
by	O
John	B-Application
Matze	I-Application
Jr.	I-Application
and	O
Jared	O
Thomson	O
in	O
Henderson	O
,	O
Nevada	O
,	O
in	O
August	O
2018	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
first	O
reported	O
in	O
November	O
2020	O
that	O
conservative	O
investor	O
Rebekah	O
Mercer	O
had	O
funded	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
and	O
Mercer	O
has	O
since	O
been	O
revealed	O
to	O
have	O
been	O
a	O
co-founder	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Mercer	O
,	O
she	O
co-founded	O
Parler	B-Application
to	O
counter	O
the	O
"	O
ever-increasing	O
tyranny	O
and	O
hubris	O
of	O
our	O
tech	O
overlords	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thomson	O
serves	O
as	O
the	O
chief	O
technology	O
officer	O
,	O
and	O
Matze	O
was	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
chief	O
executive	O
officer	O
from	O
its	O
founding	O
until	O
January	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
other	O
Parler	B-Application
senior	O
staff	O
also	O
attended	O
the	O
school	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
launched	O
in	O
August	O
2018	O
,	O
billing	O
itself	O
as	O
an	O
unbiased	O
and	O
free	O
speech	O
alternative	O
to	O
larger	O
social	O
media	O
platforms	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Twitter	B-Application
and	O
Facebook	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
The	O
service	O
was	O
relatively	O
unknown	O
until	O
a	O
December	O
2018	O
tweet	O
by	O
conservative	O
commentator	O
and	O
activist	O
Candace	O
Owens	O
brought	O
40,000	O
new	O
users	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
causing	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
servers	O
to	O
malfunction	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reuters	O
wrote	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
"	O
mostly	O
been	O
a	O
home	O
for	O
supporters	O
of	O
U.S.	O
President	O
Donald	O
Trump	O
"	O
until	O
June	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Matze	O
told	O
the	O
news	O
organization	O
that	O
although	O
he	O
had	O
originally	O
intended	O
Parler	B-Application
to	O
be	O
bipartisan	O
,	O
he	O
had	O
focused	O
its	O
marketing	O
efforts	O
toward	O
conservatives	O
as	O
they	O
began	O
to	O
join	O
the	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2019	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
100,000	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2019	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
said	O
its	O
user	O
base	O
more	O
than	O
doubled	O
after	O
around	O
200,000	O
accounts	O
from	O
Saudi	O
Arabia	O
signed	O
up	O
to	O
the	O
network	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Largely	O
supporters	O
of	O
Saudi	O
Arabian	O
Crown	O
Prince	O
Mohammed	O
bin	O
Salman	O
,	O
the	O
users	O
migrated	O
from	O
Twitter	B-Application
after	O
alleging	O
they	O
were	O
experiencing	O
censorship	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
Twitter	B-Application
did	O
not	O
acknowledge	O
removing	O
posts	O
by	O
Saudi	O
users	O
that	O
might	O
have	O
triggered	O
the	O
exodus	O
,	O
the	O
company	O
had	O
previously	O
deactivated	O
hundreds	O
of	O
accounts	O
that	O
had	O
been	O
supportive	O
of	O
the	O
Saudi	O
government	O
,	O
which	O
Twitter	B-Application
had	O
described	O
as	O
"	O
inauthentic	O
"	O
accounts	O
in	O
an	O
"	O
electronic	O
army	O
"	O
pushing	O
the	O
Saudi	O
government	O
's	O
agenda	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
influx	O
of	O
new	O
accounts	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
caused	O
some	O
service	O
interruptions	O
,	O
making	O
the	O
site	O
at	O
times	O
unusable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
described	O
the	O
Saudi	O
accounts	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
"	O
the	O
nationalist	O
movement	O
of	O
the	O
Kingdom	O
of	O
Saudi	O
Arabia	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
encouraged	O
other	O
users	O
to	O
welcome	O
them	O
to	O
the	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
experienced	O
a	O
surge	O
in	O
signups	O
in	O
mid-2020	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
,	O
Twitter	B-Application
sparked	O
outrage	O
among	O
President	O
Trump	O
and	O
his	O
supporters	O
when	O
it	O
flagged	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
president	O
's	O
tweets	O
about	O
mail-in	O
ballots	O
as	O
"	O
potentially	O
misleading	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
tweet	O
regarding	O
the	O
George	O
Floyd	O
protests	O
as	O
"	O
glorifying	O
violence	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
published	O
a	O
"	O
Declaration	O
of	O
Internet	O
Independence	O
"	O
modeled	O
after	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
Declaration	O
of	O
Independence	O
,	O
and	O
began	O
using	O
the	O
"	O
#Twexit	O
"	O
hashtag	O
(	O
a	O
portmanteau	O
of	O
"	O
Twitter	B-Application
"	O
and	O
"	O
Brexit	O
"	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Describing	O
Twitter	B-Application
as	O
a	O
"	O
Tech	O
Tyrant	O
"	O
that	O
censored	O
conservatives	O
,	O
the	O
campaign	O
encouraged	O
Twitter	B-Application
users	O
to	O
migrate	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Conservative	O
commentator	O
Dan	O
Bongino	O
announced	O
on	O
June	O
16	O
that	O
he	O
had	O
purchased	O
an	O
"	O
ownership	O
stake	O
"	O
in	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
in	O
an	O
effort	O
to	O
"	O
fight	O
back	O
against	O
"	O
what	O
he	O
described	O
as	O
"	O
Tech	O
Tyrants	O
"	O
Facebook	B-Application
and	O
Twitter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parscale	O
,	O
who	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
was	O
managing	O
the	O
Trump	O
campaign	O
,	O
endorsed	O
Parler	B-Application
in	O
a	O
tweet	O
on	O
June	O
18	O
,	O
also	O
writing	O
,	O
"	O
Hey	O
@twitter	B-Application
your	O
days	O
are	O
numbered	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
including	O
a	O
screenshot	O
of	O
a	O
tweet	O
from	O
President	O
Trump	O
which	O
Twitter	B-Application
had	O
flagged	O
as	O
"	O
manipulated	O
media	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
June	O
19	O
,	O
right-wing	O
English	O
media	O
personality	O
Katie	O
Hopkins	O
was	O
permanently	O
suspended	O
from	O
Twitter	B-Application
for	O
violating	O
their	O
policies	O
on	O
"	O
hateful	O
conduct	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
account	O
falsely	O
claiming	O
to	O
be	O
hers	O
appeared	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
shortly	O
after	O
the	O
ban	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
quickly	O
verified	O
by	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
impersonator	O
account	O
had	O
collected	O
$500	O
in	O
donations	O
solicited	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
purportedly	O
to	O
sue	O
Twitter	B-Application
over	O
the	O
ban	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
removed	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Twitter	B-Application
account	I-Application
affiliating	O
itself	O
with	O
the	O
hacktivist	O
group	O
Anonymous	O
claimed	O
responsibility	O
for	O
the	O
imposture	O
on	O
June	O
20	O
,	O
and	O
said	O
they	O
would	O
donate	O
the	O
money	O
they	O
had	O
collected	O
to	O
Black	O
Lives	O
Matter	O
groups	O
,	O
a	O
movement	O
Hopkins	O
had	O
mocked	O
in	O
the	O
past	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
's	O
then-CEO	O
Matze	O
made	O
a	O
public	O
apology	O
,	O
with	O
Parler	B-Application
acknowledging	O
that	O
the	O
impersonator	O
had	O
been	O
"	O
verified	O
by	O
an	O
employee	O
improperly	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hopkins	O
herself	O
joined	O
Parler	B-Application
on	O
June	O
20	O
,	O
with	O
Matze	O
posting	O
that	O
he	O
had	O
personally	O
verified	O
her	O
account	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
incident	O
drew	O
some	O
attention	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
within	O
the	O
United	O
Kingdom	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thirteen	O
Members	O
of	O
Parliament	O
had	O
joined	O
as	O
of	O
June	O
23	O
,	O
and	O
some	O
British	O
right-wing	O
and	O
conservative	O
activists	O
endorsed	O
the	O
service	O
over	O
Twitter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
June	O
24	O
,	O
2020	O
,	O
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
reported	O
that	O
the	O
Trump	O
campaign	O
was	O
looking	O
for	O
alternatives	O
to	O
social	O
media	O
networks	O
that	O
had	O
restricted	O
their	O
posts	O
and	O
advertising	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
was	O
being	O
considered	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Beginning	O
in	O
mid-2020	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
negotiated	O
with	O
The	O
Trump	O
Organization	O
,	O
offering	O
a	O
40%	O
stake	O
in	O
the	O
social	O
network	O
in	O
exchange	O
for	O
Trump	O
making	O
Parler	B-Application
his	O
primary	O
social	O
media	O
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
deal	O
,	O
Trump	O
would	O
have	O
had	O
to	O
post	O
all	O
his	O
content	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
at	O
least	O
four	O
hours	O
before	O
publishing	O
it	O
to	O
other	O
networks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Michael	O
Wolff	O
,	O
Trump	O
representatives	O
also	O
included	O
the	O
condition	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
ban	O
anyone	O
speaking	O
negatively	O
about	O
Trump	O
,	O
which	O
Parler	B-Application
did	O
not	O
accept	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Texas	O
Senator	O
Ted	O
Cruz	O
published	O
a	O
YouTube	B-General_Concept
video	I-General_Concept
on	O
June	O
25	O
,	O
in	O
which	O
he	O
denounced	O
other	O
social	O
media	O
platforms	O
for	O
"	O
flagrantly	O
silencing	O
those	O
with	O
whom	O
they	O
disagree	O
"	O
and	O
announced	O
that	O
he	O
was	O
"	O
proud	O
to	O
join	O
Parler	B-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Jair	O
Bolsonaro	O
,	O
the	O
right-wing	O
President	O
of	O
Brazil	O
,	O
joined	O
Parler	B-Application
on	O
July	O
13	O
;	O
Four	O
months	O
earlier	O
in	O
March	O
2020	O
,	O
Twitter	B-Application
had	O
removed	O
some	O
of	O
President	O
Bolsonaro	O
's	O
posts	O
for	O
violating	O
their	O
rules	O
on	O
spreading	O
disinformation	O
related	O
to	O
the	O
COVID-19	O
pandemic	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Earlier	O
in	O
July	O
,	O
his	O
son	O
Flávio	O
Bolsonaro	O
had	O
endorsed	O
Parler	B-Application
on	O
Twitter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
experienced	O
a	O
wave	O
of	O
signups	O
from	O
Brazil	O
in	O
July	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Bloomberg	O
News	O
on	O
July	O
15	O
,	O
2020	O
,	O
Brazilian	O
users	O
made	O
up	O
over	O
half	O
of	O
all	O
Parler	B-Application
signups	O
that	O
month	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Axios	O
reported	O
that	O
the	O
account	O
had	O
not	O
found	O
much	O
of	O
an	O
audience	O
on	O
mainstream	O
platforms	O
,	O
but	O
had	O
caught	O
on	O
among	O
the	O
alt-tech	O
platforms	O
;	O
the	O
Twitter	B-Application
account	I-Application
had	O
fewer	O
than	O
200	O
followers	O
,	O
but	O
had	O
14,000	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Facebook	B-Application
,	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
and	O
LinkedIn	B-Application
all	O
took	O
actions	O
to	O
suspend	O
the	O
accounts	O
from	O
their	O
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Washington	O
Post	O
reported	O
on	O
October7	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
declined	O
to	O
terminate	O
the	O
account	O
after	O
being	O
informed	O
of	O
its	O
connections	O
to	O
the	O
disinformation	O
organization	O
,	O
stating	O
they	O
did	O
not	O
need	O
to	O
act	O
because	O
they	O
had	O
not	O
been	O
contacted	O
directly	O
by	O
U.S.	O
law	O
enforcement	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
in	O
October	O
,	O
as	O
Facebook	B-Application
,	O
Instagram	B-Application
,	O
and	O
YouTube	B-General_Concept
acted	O
to	O
ban	O
content	O
supporting	O
the	O
far-right	O
QAnon	O
conspiracy	O
theory	O
,	O
thousands	O
of	O
QAnon	O
proponents	O
migrated	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similar	O
actions	O
by	O
Facebook	B-Application
against	O
organizations	O
promoting	O
violence	O
prompted	O
some	O
members	O
of	O
the	O
Proud	O
Boys	O
and	O
adherents	O
of	O
the	O
boogaloo	O
movement	O
to	O
move	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
experienced	O
a	O
wave	O
of	O
signups	O
following	O
the	O
2020	O
U.S.	O
presidential	O
election	O
from	O
American	O
conservatives	O
,	O
concerned	O
that	O
their	O
postsor	O
those	O
of	O
other	O
conservatives	O
on	O
mainstream	O
social	O
networkswould	O
be	O
affected	O
by	O
the	O
platforms	O
 '	O
efforts	O
to	O
quash	O
misinformation	O
about	O
the	O
election	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
app	O
was	O
downloaded	O
nearly	O
a	O
million	O
times	O
in	O
the	O
week	O
following	O
Election	O
Day	O
on	O
November	O
3	O
,	O
and	O
rose	O
to	O
the	O
top	O
of	O
both	O
the	O
Apple	B-Application
App	I-Application
Store	I-Application
's	O
and	O
the	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
's	O
lists	O
of	O
most	O
popular	O
free	O
apps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
election	O
,	O
The	O
Verge	O
reported	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
become	O
a	O
"	O
central	O
hub	O
for	O
many	O
of	O
the	O
conservative	O
protests	O
against	O
recent	O
election	O
results	O
"	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
Stop	O
the	O
Steal	O
conspiracy	O
theory	O
,	O
which	O
alleged	O
widespread	O
electoral	O
fraud	O
in	O
the	O
2020	O
presidential	O
election	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
findings	O
from	O
Stanford	O
researchers	O
published	O
on	O
January	O
28	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
registered	O
7,029	O
new	O
users	O
per	O
minute	O
during	O
the	O
election	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
verified	O
account	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
claiming	O
to	O
be	O
Ron	O
Watkins	O
,	O
the	O
former	O
site	O
administrator	O
of	O
8chan	O
and	O
son	O
of	O
8chan	O
owner	O
Jim	O
Watkins	O
,	O
made	O
several	O
posts	O
on	O
November	O
15	O
,	O
2020	O
,	O
appearing	O
to	O
confirm	O
theories	O
that	O
his	O
father	O
was	O
Q	O
,	O
the	O
anonymous	O
figure	O
behind	O
the	O
QAnon	O
conspiracy	O
theory	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
later	O
determined	O
that	O
security	O
researcher	O
Aubrey	O
Cottle	O
had	O
taken	O
advantage	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
security	O
flaws	O
to	O
change	O
the	O
name	O
of	O
an	O
already-verified	O
Parler	B-Application
account	O
,	O
giving	O
it	O
the	O
appearance	O
of	O
belonging	O
to	O
and	O
having	O
been	O
verified	O
as	O
Watkins	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
incident	O
led	O
to	O
a	O
feud	O
between	O
Watkins	O
and	O
Parler	B-Application
investor	O
Dan	O
Bongino	O
,	O
with	O
Watkins	O
publicly	O
criticizing	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
security	O
on	O
Twitter	B-Application
and	O
describing	O
the	O
service	O
as	O
"	O
compromised	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
was	O
among	O
the	O
social	O
media	O
services	O
used	O
to	O
plan	O
the	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
U.S.	O
Capitol	O
on	O
January	O
6	O
,	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
2	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
notified	O
the	O
FBI	O
about	O
material	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
lawyers	O
found	O
sufficiently	O
alarming	O
to	O
warrant	O
law	O
enforcement	O
attention	O
,	O
including	O
posts	O
by	O
a	O
user	O
who	O
declared	O
that	O
January	O
6	O
would	O
be	O
"	O
the	O
final	O
stand	O
where	O
we	O
are	O
drawing	O
the	O
red	O
line	O
at	O
Capitol	O
Hill	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
5	O
,	O
the	O
Secret	O
Service	O
warned	O
the	O
Capitol	O
Police	O
about	O
an	O
individual	O
who	O
intended	O
to	O
attend	O
the	O
rally	O
and	O
incite	O
violence	O
,	O
and	O
whose	O
Parler	B-Application
posts	O
included	O
threats	O
of	O
violence	O
against	O
police	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mentions	O
of	O
"	O
civil	O
war	O
"	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
increased	O
fourfold	O
in	O
the	O
hours	O
just	O
prior	O
to	O
the	O
storming	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
BuzzFeed	O
News	O
,	O
after	O
the	O
riot	O
at	O
the	O
Capitol	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
been	O
"	O
overrun	O
"	O
with	O
death	O
threats	O
,	O
encouragement	O
of	O
violence	O
,	O
and	O
calls	O
for	O
Trump	O
supporters	O
to	O
join	O
another	O
armed	O
march	O
on	O
Washington	O
,	O
D.C.	O
on	O
the	O
day	O
before	O
the	O
inauguration	O
of	O
Joe	O
Biden	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Activists	O
,	O
including	O
Sleeping	O
Giants	O
,	O
and	O
employees	O
of	O
technology	O
companies	O
that	O
had	O
been	O
providing	O
services	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
began	O
to	O
pressure	O
those	O
companies	O
,	O
which	O
included	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
Apple	O
,	O
and	O
Amazon	O
,	O
to	O
deny	O
service	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
experienced	O
a	O
wave	O
of	O
downloads	O
after	O
Twitter	B-Application
permanently	O
suspended	O
President	O
Donald	O
Trump	O
from	O
their	O
platform	O
due	O
to	O
his	O
remarks	O
about	O
the	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
Capitol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
led	O
Parler	B-Application
to	O
become	O
the	O
top	O
downloaded	O
app	O
on	O
the	O
Apple	B-Application
App	I-Application
Store	I-Application
on	O
January	O
8	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
8	O
,	O
two	O
days	O
after	O
the	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
Capitol	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
pulling	O
Parler	B-Application
from	O
the	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
contending	O
that	O
its	O
lack	O
of	O
"	O
moderation	O
policies	O
and	O
enforcement	O
"	O
posed	O
a	O
"	O
public	O
safety	O
threat	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
on	O
January	O
8	O
,	O
Apple	O
informed	O
Parler	B-Application
that	O
they	O
had	O
received	O
complaints	O
about	O
its	O
role	O
in	O
the	O
coordination	O
of	O
the	O
riot	O
in	O
Washington	O
D.C.	O
,	O
the	O
existence	O
of	O
"	O
objectionable	O
content	O
"	O
on	O
the	O
service	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
they	O
had	O
observed	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
app	O
also	O
appears	O
to	O
continue	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
plan	O
and	O
facilitate	O
yet	O
further	O
illegal	O
and	O
dangerous	O
activities	O
,	O
"	O
in	O
violation	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
own	O
guidelines	O
forbidding	O
such	O
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apple	O
requested	O
Parler	B-Application
submit	O
a	O
"	O
moderation	O
improvement	O
plan	O
"	O
within	O
24	O
hours	O
or	O
face	O
removal	O
from	O
the	O
App	B-Application
Store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
Matze	O
posted	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
would	O
not	O
"	O
cave	O
to	O
pressure	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
accused	O
Apple	O
of	O
being	O
anti-competitive	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apple	O
followed	O
through	O
with	O
their	O
warning	O
the	O
next	O
day	O
,	O
removing	O
Parler	B-Application
from	O
the	O
App	B-Application
Store	I-Application
on	O
January	O
9	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ahead	O
of	O
the	O
shutdown	O
,	O
some	O
Parler	B-Application
users	O
issued	O
calls	O
for	O
violence	O
and	O
armed	O
protests	O
at	O
state	O
capitols	O
and	O
circulated	O
conspiracy	O
theories	O
about	O
Apple	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cloud	B-General_Concept
communications	I-General_Concept
company	O
Twilio	B-General_Concept
ended	O
service	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
which	O
made	O
the	O
service	O
's	O
two-factor	O
authentication	O
system	O
stop	O
working	O
;	O
Okta	B-Application
also	O
denied	O
them	O
access	O
to	O
their	O
identity	O
management	O
service	O
,	O
resulting	O
in	O
Parler	B-Application
losing	O
access	O
to	O
some	O
of	O
their	O
software	O
tools	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
,	O
the	O
database	O
company	O
ScyllaDB	B-Language
terminated	O
its	O
relationship	O
with	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
who	O
had	O
been	O
using	O
Scylla	B-Language
's	O
Enterprise	O
database	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
9	O
,	O
Amazon	O
announced	O
that	O
it	O
would	O
suspend	O
Parler	B-Application
from	O
Amazon	B-Application
Web	I-Application
Services	I-Application
,	O
effective	O
at	O
11:59p.m.	O
</s>
<s>
Echoing	O
Google	B-Application
's	O
rationale	O
for	O
dropping	O
its	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
app	O
,	O
Amazon	O
said	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
failure	O
to	O
police	O
violent	O
content	O
made	O
the	O
site	O
"	O
a	O
very	O
real	O
risk	O
to	O
public	O
safety	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
went	O
offline	O
when	O
Amazon	O
withdrew	O
its	O
cloud	B-Architecture
computing	I-Architecture
services	O
as	O
scheduled	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
11	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
sued	O
Amazon	O
under	O
antitrust	O
law	O
,	O
saying	O
the	O
suspension	O
of	O
services	O
was	O
"	O
apparently	O
motivated	O
by	O
political	O
animus	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
had	O
been	O
carried	O
out	O
with	O
the	O
intention	O
of	O
benefiting	O
Twitter	B-Application
by	O
reducing	O
competition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
also	O
denied	O
Amazon	O
's	O
claims	O
that	O
it	O
failed	O
to	O
properly	O
moderate	O
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
March	O
2	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
withdrew	O
a	O
federal	O
antitrust	O
lawsuit	O
they	O
had	O
filed	O
against	O
Amazon	O
two	O
months	O
prior	O
,	O
but	O
filed	O
a	O
new	O
lawsuit	O
against	O
the	O
company	O
in	O
state	O
court	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
new	O
lawsuit	O
alleged	O
Amazon	O
had	O
breached	O
terms	O
in	O
their	O
contract	O
and	O
defamed	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Amid	O
the	O
lawsuit	O
,	O
in	O
mid-April	O
2021	O
,	O
Amazon	O
accused	O
Parler	B-Application
of	O
trying	O
to	O
conceal	O
its	O
ownership	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
September	O
17	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
Seattle	O
federal	O
district	O
Judge	O
Barbara	O
Rothstein	O
approved	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
request	O
that	O
its	O
complaint	O
against	O
Amazon	O
be	O
heard	O
in	O
King	O
County	O
Superior	O
Court	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
applauded	O
the	O
technology	O
companies	O
 '	O
decisions	O
to	O
deny	O
service	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ben	O
Wizner	O
,	O
a	O
lawyer	O
for	O
the	O
American	O
Civil	O
Liberties	O
Union	O
(	O
ACLU	O
)	O
,	O
told	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
that	O
he	O
was	O
concerned	O
about	O
neutrality	O
when	O
it	O
came	O
to	O
Internet	O
infrastructure	O
providers	O
such	O
as	O
Amazon	B-Application
AWS	I-Application
and	O
app	B-Application
stores	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Paul	O
Levinson	O
,	O
a	O
professor	O
at	O
Fordham	O
University	O
,	O
wrote	O
in	O
The	O
Conversation	O
that	O
although	O
he	O
believed	O
the	O
de-platforming	O
violated	O
the	O
"	O
spirit	O
of	O
the	O
First	O
Amendment	O
"	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
warranted	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
incitement	O
to	O
violence	O
on	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
site	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
shutdown	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
users	O
were	O
reported	O
to	O
have	O
migrated	O
to	O
other	O
alt-tech	O
websites	O
including	O
BitChute	O
,	O
Clapper	O
,	O
CloutHub	O
,	O
DLive	O
,	O
Gab	O
,	O
MeWe	B-Application
,	O
Minds	B-Protocol
,	O
Rumble	O
,	O
and	O
Wimkin	B-Application
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
encrypted	O
messaging	O
services	O
including	O
Telegram	B-Application
and	O
Signal	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
Capitol	O
and	O
just	O
before	O
Parler	B-Application
went	O
offline	O
,	O
a	O
researcher	O
scraped	B-Application
roughly	O
eight	O
terabytes	O
of	O
public	O
Parler	B-Application
posts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
posts	O
scraped	B-Application
made	O
up	O
99%	O
of	O
publicly-accessible	O
Parler	B-Application
posts	O
,	O
including	O
more	O
than	O
a	O
million	O
videos	O
,	O
which	O
maintained	O
GPS	O
metadata	O
identifying	O
the	O
exact	O
locations	O
where	O
the	O
videos	O
were	O
recorded	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Ars	O
Technica	O
and	O
Wired	O
,	O
the	O
reason	O
the	O
researcher	O
was	O
able	O
to	O
scrape	O
the	O
data	O
so	O
easily	O
was	O
because	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
website	O
had	O
poor	O
coding	O
and	O
poor	O
security	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Wired	O
,	O
although	O
all	O
posts	O
downloaded	O
by	O
the	O
researcher	O
were	O
public	O
,	O
because	O
Parler	B-Application
did	O
not	O
scrub	O
metadata	O
,	O
GPS	O
coordinates	O
of	O
many	O
users	O
 '	O
homes	O
had	O
likely	O
been	O
exposed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
January	O
15	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
Gizmodo	O
had	O
mapped	O
out	O
the	O
locations	O
of	O
around	O
70,000	O
of	O
the	O
GPS	O
coordinates	O
linked	O
to	O
videos	O
scraped	B-Application
from	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Videos	O
scraped	B-Application
from	O
Parler	B-Application
were	O
used	O
as	O
evidence	O
during	O
the	O
second	O
impeachment	O
trial	O
of	O
Donald	O
Trump	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
21	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
the	O
chairwoman	O
of	O
the	O
House	O
Oversight	O
and	O
Reform	O
Committee	O
,	O
Carolyn	O
Maloney	O
,	O
called	O
for	O
an	O
FBI	O
probe	O
into	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
including	O
its	O
role	O
in	O
the	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
Capitol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Maloney	O
said	O
her	O
committee	O
intends	O
to	O
open	O
an	O
investigation	O
into	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
February	O
8	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
the	O
committee	O
asked	O
Parler	B-Application
for	O
information	O
relating	O
to	O
who	O
owns	O
or	O
has	O
funded	O
the	O
company	O
,	O
any	O
business	O
ties	O
to	O
Russia	O
,	O
and	O
its	O
alleged	O
offer	O
of	O
an	O
ownership	O
interest	O
in	O
the	O
company	O
to	O
former	O
president	O
Donald	O
Trump	O
during	O
his	O
term	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
27	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
the	O
U.S.	O
House	O
of	O
Representatives	O
select	O
committee	O
investigating	O
the	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
Capitol	O
demanded	O
records	O
from	O
Parler	B-Application
(	O
alongside	O
14	O
other	O
social	O
media	O
companies	O
)	O
going	O
back	O
to	O
the	O
spring	O
of	O
2020	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
's	O
board	O
,	O
led	O
by	O
Rebekah	O
Mercer	O
,	O
dismissed	O
John	B-Application
Matze	I-Application
from	O
his	O
role	O
as	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
CEO	O
on	O
January	O
29	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Matze	O
sent	O
a	O
memo	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
staff	O
in	O
which	O
he	O
said	O
that	O
"	O
I	O
did	O
not	O
participate	O
in	O
this	O
decision	O
"	O
to	O
terminate	O
him	O
and	O
that	O
he	O
had	O
"	O
met	O
constant	O
resistance	O
to	O
 [ his ] 	O
product	O
vision	O
,	O
 [ his ] 	O
strong	O
belief	O
in	O
free	O
speech	O
and	O
 [ his ] 	O
view	O
of	O
how	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
site	O
should	O
be	O
managed	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Amy	O
Peikoff	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
Chief	O
Policy	O
Officer	O
,	O
provided	O
a	O
statement	O
to	O
Fox	O
News	O
in	O
which	O
she	O
disputed	O
Matze	O
's	O
memo	O
to	O
staff	O
as	O
"	O
inaccurate	O
and	O
misleading	O
"	O
,	O
though	O
she	O
did	O
not	O
specify	O
to	O
which	O
statements	O
she	O
was	O
objecting	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
investor	O
Dan	O
Bongino	O
published	O
a	O
video	O
on	O
Facebook	B-Application
after	O
Matze	O
's	O
departure	O
,	O
accusing	O
Matze	O
of	O
"	O
really	O
bad	O
decisions	O
"	O
leading	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
being	O
taken	O
offline	O
and	O
causing	O
app	O
stability	O
issues	O
,	O
and	O
saying	O
that	O
Matze	O
"	O
decided	O
to	O
make	O
this	O
public	O
,	O
not	O
us	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
February	O
19	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
briefly	O
banned	O
Matze	O
's	O
account	O
before	O
restoring	O
it	O
later	O
that	O
day	O
after	O
BuzzFeed	O
News	O
contacted	O
a	O
Parler	B-Application
spokesperson	O
about	O
the	O
banning	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
banning	O
came	O
after	O
Matze	O
made	O
a	O
post	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
asking	O
his	O
followers	O
what	O
they	O
thought	O
the	O
"	O
fair	O
market	O
value	O
"	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
was	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
March	O
22	O
,	O
in	O
Clark	O
County	O
,	O
Nevada	O
,	O
Matze	O
filed	O
a	O
lawsuit	O
against	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
board	O
,	O
alleging	O
that	O
Rebekah	O
Mercer	O
and	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
board	O
members	O
engaged	O
in	O
a	O
scheme	O
to	O
steal	O
Matze	O
's	O
share	O
in	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Matze	O
wrote	O
in	O
a	O
Parler	B-Application
post	O
on	O
January9	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
could	O
be	O
unavailable	O
for	O
a	O
week	O
as	O
they	O
worked	O
to	O
"	O
rebuild	O
from	O
scratch	O
"	O
and	O
move	O
to	O
a	O
new	O
service	O
provider	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
an	O
interview	O
with	O
Fox	O
News	O
on	O
January	O
10	O
,	O
Matze	O
said	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
faced	O
trouble	O
in	O
finding	O
a	O
new	O
service	O
provider	O
,	O
contradicting	O
a	O
previous	O
Parler	B-Application
post	O
in	O
which	O
he	O
had	O
said	O
many	O
vendors	O
were	O
vying	O
for	O
their	O
business	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
also	O
said	O
others	O
had	O
refused	O
to	O
work	O
with	O
Parler	B-Application
:	O
"	O
Every	O
vendor	O
,	O
from	O
text	O
message	O
services	O
to	O
email	O
providers	O
to	O
our	O
lawyers	O
,	O
all	O
ditched	O
us	O
,	O
too	O
,	O
on	O
the	O
same	O
day.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Interviewed	O
by	O
Reuters	O
on	O
January	O
13	O
,	O
Matze	O
said	O
he	O
did	O
not	O
know	O
if	O
or	O
when	O
Parler	B-Application
would	O
return	O
to	O
operation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Matze	O
also	O
claimed	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
could	O
be	O
back	O
online	O
by	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
January	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
a	O
January	O
12	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
report	O
,	O
other	O
cloud	B-Architecture
hosting	I-Architecture
platforms	O
that	O
could	O
potentially	O
host	O
Parler	B-Application
would	O
be	O
Google	B-General_Concept
Cloud	I-General_Concept
Platform	I-General_Concept
,	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Azure	I-Application
,	O
or	O
the	O
Oracle	B-General_Concept
Cloud	I-General_Concept
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
publication	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
not	O
contacted	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
and	O
would	O
not	O
be	O
using	O
Oracle	O
for	O
cloud	B-Architecture
hosting	I-Architecture
;	O
Google	B-Application
declined	O
to	O
comment	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
Journal	O
noted	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
had	O
denied	O
Parler	B-Application
a	O
position	O
in	O
the	O
Play	O
Store	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Journal	O
also	O
noted	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
could	O
consider	O
using	O
smaller	O
cloud	B-Architecture
hosting	I-Architecture
companies	O
,	O
but	O
that	O
some	O
technologists	O
doubted	O
such	O
companies	O
 '	O
ability	O
to	O
provide	O
stable	O
hosting	O
to	O
such	O
a	O
heavily	O
used	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
such	O
smaller	O
provider	O
,	O
DigitalOcean	B-Application
,	O
let	O
it	O
be	O
known	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
not	O
accept	O
Parler	B-Application
as	O
a	O
customer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
10	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
transferred	O
their	O
domain	O
name	O
registration	O
to	O
Epik	O
,	O
a	O
domain	B-Application
registrar	I-Application
and	O
web	O
hosting	O
company	O
known	O
for	O
hosting	O
far-right	O
websites	O
such	O
as	O
Gab	O
and	O
Infowars	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Vice	O
noted	O
that	O
through	O
this	O
move	O
,	O
Amazon	B-Application
Web	I-Application
Services	I-Application
was	O
again	O
indirectly	O
providing	O
services	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
as	O
Epik	O
uses	O
AWS	B-Application
to	O
host	O
many	O
of	O
their	O
DNS	B-Protocol
servers	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
17	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
brought	O
their	O
website	O
back	O
online	O
,	O
hosting	O
only	O
a	O
static	O
page	O
without	O
any	O
of	O
the	O
functionality	O
of	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
's	O
web	O
hosting	O
provider	O
was	O
unknown	O
,	O
but	O
it	O
was	O
noted	O
that	O
they	O
were	O
receiving	O
protection	O
from	O
distributed	O
denial-of-service	O
(	O
DDoS	O
)	O
attacks	O
from	O
the	O
Russian-owned	O
cloud	B-Architecture
services	I-Architecture
company	O
DDoS-Guard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
move	O
was	O
criticized	O
in	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
and	O
Wired	O
as	O
routing	O
traffic	O
through	O
Russia	O
,	O
and	O
may	O
enable	O
the	O
Russian	O
government	O
to	O
surveil	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
users	O
and	O
provide	O
data	O
to	O
Russia	O
's	O
Federal	O
Security	O
Service	O
(	O
FSB	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
Epik	O
and	O
DDoS-Guard	O
said	O
they	O
were	O
not	O
providing	O
Parler	B-Application
with	O
webhosting	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Parler	B-Application
service	O
returned	O
online	O
for	O
existing	O
users	O
on	O
February	O
15	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
redesigned	O
website	O
and	O
logo	O
,	O
and	O
said	O
they	O
would	O
open	O
the	O
service	O
to	O
new	O
signups	O
the	O
following	O
week	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
posts	O
from	O
before	O
the	O
service	O
went	O
offline	O
are	O
no	O
longer	O
available	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
their	O
redesigned	O
site	O
will	O
monitor	O
violent	O
content	O
with	O
human	O
and	O
artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
and	O
that	O
they	O
will	O
hide	O
posts	O
that	O
attack	O
a	O
person	O
based	O
on	O
sex	O
,	O
sexual	O
orientation	O
,	O
race	O
,	O
or	O
religion	O
with	O
a	O
"	O
trolling	O
filter	O
"	O
,	O
however	O
,	O
users	O
are	O
allowed	O
to	O
click	O
through	O
the	O
filter	O
and	O
view	O
the	O
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
's	O
new	O
host	O
is	O
SkySilk	O
Cloud	B-Architecture
Services	I-Architecture
,	O
a	O
web	O
infrastructure	O
company	O
based	O
in	O
Los	O
Angeles	O
who	O
said	O
of	O
their	O
hosting	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
that	O
"	O
Skysilk	O
does	O
not	O
advocate	O
nor	O
condone	O
hate	O
,	O
rather	O
,	O
it	O
advocates	O
the	O
right	O
to	O
private	O
judgment	O
and	O
rejects	O
the	O
role	O
of	O
being	O
the	O
judge	O
,	O
jury	O
,	O
and	O
executioner.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
SkySilk	O
also	O
said	O
they	O
believe	O
Parler	B-Application
is	O
"	O
taking	O
the	O
necessary	O
steps	O
to	O
better	O
monitor	O
its	O
platform	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mercer	O
helped	O
finance	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
return	O
online	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
February	O
25	O
,	O
Apple	O
denied	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
request	O
to	O
be	O
re-added	O
to	O
the	O
App	B-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
concluding	O
that	O
the	O
changes	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
made	O
to	O
their	O
terms	O
of	O
service	O
were	O
not	O
adequate	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
late	O
March	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
claimed	O
in	O
a	O
letter	O
to	O
the	O
House	O
Oversight	O
Committee	O
that	O
"	O
in	O
the	O
days	O
and	O
weeks	O
leading	O
up	O
to	O
January	O
6th	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
referred	O
violent	O
content	O
from	O
its	O
platform	O
to	O
the	O
FBI	O
for	O
investigation	O
over	O
50	O
times	O
,	O
and	O
Parler	B-Application
even	O
alerted	O
law	O
enforcement	O
to	O
specific	O
threats	O
of	O
violence	O
being	O
planned	O
at	O
the	O
Capitol.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
signed	O
up	O
for	O
Salesforce	B-Application
's	O
email	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
modified	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
app	O
was	O
released	O
on	O
the	O
App	B-Application
Store	I-Application
on	O
May	O
17	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
blocks	O
posts	O
identified	O
by	O
Parler	B-Application
as	O
"	O
hate	O
"	O
,	O
though	O
they	O
are	O
still	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
web	O
and	O
on	O
other	O
versions	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
CEO	O
George	O
Farmer	O
asked	O
for	O
an	O
apology	O
from	O
Facebook	B-Application
COO	O
Sheryl	O
Sandberg	O
and	O
others	O
after	O
a	O
Reuters	O
report	O
said	O
that	O
the	O
FBI	O
found	O
little	O
evidence	O
that	O
the	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
Capitol	O
was	O
planned	O
and	O
organized	O
in	O
advance	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
September	O
14	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
sponsor	O
NASCAR	O
Xfinity	O
Series	O
driver	O
J	O
.	O
J	O
.	O
Yeley	O
's	O
No	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
20	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
expand	O
their	O
business	O
into	O
non-fungible	O
tokens	O
(	O
NFTs	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
5	O
,	O
2022	O
,	O
left-leaning	O
liberal	O
think	O
tank	O
New	O
America	O
released	O
a	O
report	O
titled	O
"	O
Parler	B-Application
and	O
the	O
Road	O
to	O
the	O
Capitol	O
Attack	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Mother	O
Jones	O
,	O
the	O
report	O
is	O
"	O
a	O
deep	O
and	O
retrospective	O
dive	O
through	O
an	O
estimated	O
183	O
million	O
now-public	O
posts	O
"	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
that	O
discusses	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
role	O
in	O
the	O
2021	O
Capitol	O
attack	O
and	O
the	O
platform	O
's	O
role	O
in	O
the	O
spread	O
of	O
disinformation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
11	O
,	O
a	O
ransomware	O
group	O
joined	O
Parler	B-Application
and	O
started	O
using	O
the	O
platform	O
to	O
aid	O
its	O
extortion	O
efforts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prior	O
to	O
joining	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
the	O
group	O
had	O
accounts	O
on	O
Tumblr	B-Application
and	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
which	O
were	O
both	O
removed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
22	O
,	O
Farmer	O
claimed	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
was	O
"	O
unfairly	O
scapegoated	O
"	O
in	O
the	O
aftermath	O
of	O
the	O
Capitol	O
attack	O
and	O
alleged	O
there	O
was	O
a	O
conspiracy	O
against	O
him	O
by	O
Big	O
Tech	O
companies	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
February	O
9	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
former	O
First	O
Lady	O
Melania	O
Trump	O
would	O
exclusively	O
use	O
Parler	B-Application
for	O
communications	O
and	O
that	O
the	O
platform	O
would	O
become	O
her	O
"	O
social	O
media	O
home	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
early	O
March	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
launch	O
a	O
marketplace	O
for	O
NFTs	O
called	O
DeepRedSky	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
late	O
June	O
,	O
Tampa	O
Bay	O
lawyer	O
Dale	O
Golden	O
filed	O
a	O
lawsuit	O
against	O
Parler	B-Application
after	O
receiving	O
unsolicited	O
promotional	O
text	O
messages	O
from	O
Parler	B-Application
and	O
alleged	O
that	O
the	O
platform	O
had	O
violated	O
Florida	O
's	O
Telephone	O
Solicitation	O
Act	O
(	O
FTSA	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
September	O
2	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
app	O
became	O
available	O
again	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
after	O
Parler	B-Application
reportedly	O
agreed	O
to	O
moderate	O
posts	O
that	O
are	O
shown	O
in	O
the	O
Android	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
in	O
September	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
a	O
restructuring	O
of	O
their	O
platform	O
and	O
company	O
that	O
would	O
focus	O
on	O
providing	O
services	O
to	O
businesses	O
that	O
have	O
the	O
potential	O
of	O
being	O
forced	O
off	O
the	O
Internet	O
for	O
hosting	O
controversial	O
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
also	O
announced	O
the	O
creation	O
of	O
a	O
new	O
parent	O
company	O
,	O
Parlement	O
Technologies	O
Inc	O
.	O
Parlement	O
announced	O
the	O
purchase	O
of	O
Dynascale	O
Inc.	O
,	O
a	O
cloud	B-Architecture
service	I-Architecture
provider	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
October	O
17	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
parent	O
company	O
stated	O
that	O
Kanye	O
West	O
had	O
agreed	O
to	O
buy	O
ownership	O
of	O
the	O
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
came	O
after	O
West	O
was	O
blocked	O
from	O
Instagram	B-Application
and	O
Twitter	B-Application
for	O
antisemitic	O
remarks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
accidentally	O
doxxed	B-Application
over	O
300	O
of	O
its	O
VIP	O
members	O
by	O
including	O
their	O
email	O
addresses	O
in	O
its	O
announcement	O
of	O
West	O
's	O
purchase	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
April	O
14	O
,	O
2023	O
,	O
digital	O
media	O
conglomerate	O
Starboard	O
announced	O
that	O
it	O
had	O
acquired	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
parent	O
company	O
Parlement	O
Technologies	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
it	O
would	O
temporarily	O
shut	O
down	O
the	O
social	O
site	O
while	O
it	O
prepared	O
a	O
revamped	O
version	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
website	O
's	O
home	O
page	O
was	O
replaced	O
with	O
a	O
holding	O
page	O
containing	O
a	O
statement	O
by	O
Starboard	O
saying	O
that	O
"	O
No	O
reasonable	O
person	O
believes	O
that	O
a	O
Twitter	B-Application
clone	O
just	O
for	O
conservatives	O
is	O
a	O
viable	O
business	O
any	O
more	O
"	O
and	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
app	O
as	O
it	O
is	O
currently	O
constituted	O
will	O
be	O
pulled	O
down	O
from	O
operation	O
to	O
undergo	O
a	O
strategic	O
assessment	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
had	O
fewer	O
than	O
a	O
million	O
users	O
until	O
early	O
2020	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
last	O
week	O
of	O
June	O
2020	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
estimated	O
that	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
app	O
had	O
more	O
than	O
1.5	O
million	O
daily	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
2.8	O
million	O
total	O
users	O
and	O
had	O
been	O
downloaded	O
2.5	O
million	O
times	O
,	O
nearly	O
half	O
of	O
which	O
were	O
in	O
June	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Throughout	O
June	O
and	O
July	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
on	O
several	O
occasions	O
was	O
highly	O
listed	O
both	O
on	O
the	O
Apple	B-Application
App	I-Application
Store	I-Application
and	O
on	O
the	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
store	I-Application
,	O
in	O
various	O
categories	O
and	O
overall	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Parler	B-Application
app	O
was	O
downloaded	O
nearly	O
a	O
million	O
times	O
in	O
the	O
week	O
following	O
Election	O
Day	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
on	O
November	O
3	O
,	O
and	O
became	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
free	O
app	O
both	O
on	O
the	O
Apple	B-Application
App	I-Application
Store	I-Application
and	O
on	O
the	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
remained	O
the	O
most	O
downloaded	O
app	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
for	O
five	O
days	O
in	O
early	O
November	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
reported	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
added	O
3.5	O
million	O
users	O
in	O
a	O
single	O
week	O
,	O
and	O
during	O
that	O
month	O
the	O
service	O
had	O
about	O
four	O
million	O
active	O
users	O
,	O
and	O
more	O
than	O
ten	O
million	O
total	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2020	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
around	O
2.3	O
million	O
daily	O
active	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fast	O
Company	O
reported	O
that	O
,	O
as	O
of	O
December	O
5	O
,	O
both	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
daily	O
active	O
users	O
and	O
the	O
rate	O
of	O
new	O
downloads	O
had	O
dropped	O
from	O
their	O
November	O
peak	O
,	O
and	O
CNN	B-Architecture
reported	O
on	O
December	O
10	O
that	O
downloads	O
had	O
"	O
plummeted	O
"	O
and	O
were	O
returning	O
to	O
the	O
numbers	O
Parler	B-Application
was	O
experiencing	O
before	O
the	O
election	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
again	O
topped	O
the	O
App	B-Application
Store	I-Application
downloads	O
chart	O
on	O
January	O
8	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
shortly	O
after	O
then-President	O
Trump	O
was	O
permanently	O
suspended	O
from	O
Twitter	B-Application
and	O
also	O
shortly	O
before	O
Parler	B-Application
was	O
removed	O
from	O
the	O
App	B-Application
Store	I-Application
by	O
Apple	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
January	O
2021	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
reported	O
having	O
15	O
million	O
total	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Sensor	O
Tower	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
has	O
received	O
11.3	O
million	O
global	O
downloads	O
from	O
both	O
the	O
App	B-Application
Store	I-Application
and	O
the	O
Play	O
Store	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
according	O
to	O
Sensor	O
Tower	O
,	O
app	O
downloads	O
for	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
dropped	O
from	O
517,000	O
in	O
December	O
2020	O
to	O
11,000	O
in	O
June	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Despite	O
the	O
wave	O
in	O
signups	O
in	O
mid-2020	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
larger	O
surge	O
in	O
November	O
of	O
that	O
year	O
,	O
some	O
journalists	O
and	O
researchers	O
expressed	O
doubt	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
will	O
remain	O
popular	O
or	O
enter	O
mainstream	O
usage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
TheWrap	O
,	O
after	O
several	O
weeks	O
of	O
more	O
than	O
700,000	O
downloads	O
a	O
week	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
weekly	O
downloads	O
subsided	O
back	O
into	O
the	O
low	O
100,000	O
s	O
during	O
mid-July	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bloomberg	O
News	O
also	O
reported	O
that	O
downloads	O
of	O
the	O
app	O
had	O
substantially	O
slowed	O
following	O
the	O
initial	O
mid-2020	O
wave	O
,	O
and	O
described	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
June	O
download	O
numbers	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
small	O
fraction	O
"	O
of	O
apps	O
like	O
TikTok	B-Application
,	O
which	O
receives	O
tens	O
of	O
millions	O
of	O
downloads	O
a	O
month	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
's	O
user	O
base	O
,	O
though	O
it	O
grew	O
substantially	O
in	O
mid	O
-	O
and	O
late	O
2020	O
,	O
remained	O
much	O
smaller	O
than	O
its	O
competitors	O
 '	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
Twitter	B-Application
had	O
187	O
million	O
users	O
a	O
day	O
and	O
Facebook	B-Application
had	O
1.8	O
billion	O
users	O
a	O
day	O
,	O
whereas	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
four	O
million	O
active	O
users	O
and	O
eight	O
million	O
total	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Slate	O
wrote	O
that	O
alternative	O
social	O
networks	O
like	O
Parler	B-Application
"	O
normally	O
...	O
just	O
do	O
n't	O
get	O
that	O
big.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
download	O
and	O
usage	O
activity	O
diminished	O
following	O
the	O
November	O
surge	O
in	O
popularity	O
,	O
the	O
vice	O
president	O
of	O
insights	O
at	O
the	O
app	O
analytics	O
company	O
Apptopia	O
said	O
to	O
CNN	B-Architecture
,	O
"	O
The	O
data	O
trends	O
resemble	O
a	O
fad	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
short-lived	O
one	O
at	O
that	O
...	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
a	O
very	O
good	O
spike	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
some	O
high-profile	O
figures	O
have	O
created	O
accounts	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
many	O
of	O
them	O
remain	O
more	O
active	O
,	O
and	O
have	O
substantially	O
larger	O
follower	O
bases	O
,	O
on	O
mainstream	O
social	O
networks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mic	O
questioned	O
how	O
long	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
spike	O
in	O
popularity	O
would	O
last	O
,	O
citing	O
as	O
an	O
obstacle	O
the	O
reluctance	O
among	O
those	O
with	O
large	O
Twitter	B-Application
followings	O
to	O
migrate	O
to	O
a	O
new	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Daily	O
Beast	O
noted	O
in	O
July	O
and	O
October	O
2020	O
that	O
many	O
high-profile	O
conservatives	O
who	O
opened	O
accounts	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
in	O
the	O
previous	O
month	O
had	O
since	O
stopped	O
using	O
the	O
service	O
,	O
while	O
remaining	O
active	O
on	O
mainstream	O
social	O
networks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
have	O
described	O
Parler	B-Application
as	O
a	O
backup	O
in	O
case	O
Twitter	B-Application
bans	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
CNN	B-Architecture
interviewed	O
Trump	O
supporters	O
in	O
December	O
2020	O
about	O
their	O
social	O
media	O
use	O
and	O
found	O
that	O
"	O
almost	O
none	O
"	O
had	O
completely	O
abandoned	O
Twitter	B-Application
and	O
Facebook	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
The	O
same	O
month	O
,	O
OneZero	B-Protocol
reported	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
users	O
were	O
gathering	O
in	O
Facebook	B-Application
groups	O
to	O
complain	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
interface	O
was	O
difficult	O
to	O
operate	O
,	O
to	O
share	O
concerns	O
about	O
having	O
to	O
submit	O
identification	O
to	O
be	O
verified	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
express	O
regrets	O
that	O
their	O
friends	O
and	O
family	O
had	O
not	O
joined	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
has	O
a	O
significant	O
user	O
base	O
of	O
conservatives	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Anti-Defamation	O
League	O
wrote	O
in	O
November	O
2020	O
that	O
"	O
Parler	B-Application
has	O
attracted	O
a	O
range	O
of	O
right-wing	O
extremists	O
"	O
including	O
Proud	O
Boys	O
;	O
proponents	O
of	O
the	O
QAnon	O
conspiracy	O
theory	O
;	O
anti-government	O
extremists	O
including	O
members	O
of	O
the	O
Oath	O
Keepers	O
,	O
Three	O
Percenters	O
,	O
and	O
other	O
militia	O
groups	O
;	O
and	O
white	O
supremacists	O
including	O
members	O
of	O
the	O
alt-right	O
and	O
far-right	O
accelerationists	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
terrorist	O
group	O
Atomwaffen	O
Division	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Leaked	O
GPS	O
coordinates	O
from	O
Parler	B-Application
also	O
revealed	O
that	O
users	O
of	O
the	O
site	O
include	O
police	O
officers	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
and	O
members	O
of	O
the	O
U.S.	O
Armed	O
Forces	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
was	O
also	O
used	O
by	O
at	O
least	O
14	O
UK	O
Conservative	O
Party	O
Members	O
of	O
Parliament	O
;	O
several	O
ministers	O
including	O
cabinet	O
minister	O
Michael	O
Gove	O
and	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
prominent	O
UK	O
conservative	O
commentators	O
joined	O
the	O
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
right-wing	O
news	O
companies	O
including	O
Breitbart	O
News	O
,	O
The	O
Epoch	O
Times	O
,	O
and	O
The	O
Daily	O
Caller	O
also	O
had	O
accounts	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Researchers	O
,	O
journalists	O
,	O
and	O
Parler	B-Application
users	O
have	O
observed	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
ideological	O
diversity	O
on	O
the	O
service	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
has	O
served	O
as	O
an	O
echo	O
chamber	O
for	O
right-wing	O
extremists	O
and	O
Trump	O
supporters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
mid-2020	O
,	O
alt-right	O
activist	O
and	O
Trump	O
supporter	O
Jack	O
Posobiec	O
compared	O
the	O
service	O
to	O
a	O
Trump	O
rally	O
,	O
saying	O
Parler	B-Application
lacks	O
the	O
"	O
energy	O
"	O
Twitter	B-Application
draws	O
from	O
having	O
communities	O
of	O
people	O
with	O
differing	O
viewpoints	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Around	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
,	O
extremism	O
researcher	O
and	O
professor	O
Amarnath	O
Amarasingam	O
said	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
"	O
talking	O
to	O
yourself	O
in	O
the	O
dark	O
corners	O
of	O
the	O
internet	O
is	O
actually	O
not	O
that	O
satisfying	O
,	O
"	O
and	O
that	O
he	O
was	O
skeptical	O
Parler	B-Application
would	O
excite	O
the	O
far	O
right	O
without	O
left-leaning	O
users	O
with	O
whom	O
they	O
can	O
interact	O
and	O
fight	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2020	O
,	O
Matze	O
said	O
he	O
wanted	O
to	O
see	O
more	O
debate	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
and	O
offered	O
a	O
"	O
progressive	O
bounty	O
"	O
of	O
$	O
10,000	O
to	O
liberal	O
pundits	O
with	O
at	O
least	O
50,000	O
Twitter	B-Application
or	O
Facebook	B-Application
followers	O
who	O
would	O
join	O
;	O
receiving	O
no	O
takers	O
,	O
he	O
later	O
increased	O
this	O
amount	O
to	O
$	O
20,000	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Jason	O
Blazakis	O
,	O
the	O
director	O
of	O
the	O
Center	O
on	O
Terrorism	O
,	O
Extremism	O
,	O
and	O
Counterterrorism	O
at	O
the	O
Middlebury	O
Institute	O
,	O
told	O
The	O
Hill	O
in	O
November	O
2020	O
that	O
he	O
thought	O
extremist	O
users	O
migrating	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
was	O
a	O
good	O
thing	O
:	O
"	O
these	O
people	O
are	O
leaving	O
those	O
platforms	O
and	O
no	O
longer	O
trying	O
to	O
red	O
pill	O
individuals	O
to	O
see	O
their	O
conspiracy	O
theories	O
on	O
large	O
platforms	O
like	O
Facebook	B-Application
and	O
Twitter.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
said	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
size	O
might	O
result	O
in	O
a	O
smaller	O
audience	O
for	O
those	O
pushing	O
conspiracy	O
theories	O
and	O
spreading	O
misinformation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Angelo	O
Carusone	O
,	O
president	O
of	O
the	O
progressive	O
media	O
watchdog	O
group	O
Media	O
Matters	O
for	O
America	O
,	O
has	O
said	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
"	O
The	O
self-segmenting	O
of	O
this	O
group	O
to	O
Parler	B-Application
will	O
intensify	O
their	O
extremism	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
is	O
one	O
of	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
alternative	O
social	O
network	O
platforms	O
,	O
including	O
Gab	O
and	O
BitChute	O
,	O
that	O
are	O
popular	O
with	O
people	O
banned	O
from	O
mainstream	O
networks	O
such	O
as	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
Facebook	B-Application
,	O
YouTube	B-General_Concept
,	O
Reddit	B-Application
,	O
and	O
Instagram	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Deen	O
Freelon	O
and	O
colleagues	O
writing	O
in	O
Science	O
characterized	O
Parler	B-Application
as	O
among	O
alt-tech	O
websites	O
and	O
services	O
that	O
are	O
"	O
dedicated	O
to	O
right-wing	O
communities	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
listed	O
the	O
service	O
along	O
with	O
4chan	O
,	O
8chan	O
,	O
BitChute	O
,	O
and	O
Gab	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
noted	O
there	O
are	O
also	O
more	O
ideologically	O
neutral	O
alt-tech	O
services	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Discord	B-Application
and	O
Telegram	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Joe	O
Mulhall	O
of	O
the	O
UK	O
anti-racism	O
group	O
Hope	O
Not	O
Hate	O
has	O
categorized	O
Parler	B-Application
among	O
the	O
"	O
bespoke	O
platforms	O
"	O
for	O
the	O
far-right	O
,	O
which	O
he	O
defines	O
as	O
platforms	O
which	O
were	O
created	O
by	O
people	O
who	O
themselves	O
have	O
"	O
far-right	O
leanings	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
distinguishes	O
these	O
from	O
"	O
co-opted	O
platforms	O
"	O
such	O
as	O
DLive	O
and	O
Telegram	B-Application
,	O
which	O
were	O
adopted	O
by	O
the	O
far-right	O
due	O
to	O
minimal	O
moderation	O
but	O
not	O
specifically	O
created	O
for	O
their	O
use	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
is	O
known	O
for	O
its	O
conservative	O
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
has	O
said	O
they	O
will	O
not	O
fact-check	O
posts	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
,	O
a	O
decision	O
BBC	O
News	O
in	O
2020	O
says	O
has	O
allowed	O
misinformation	O
to	O
spread	O
more	O
easily	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
than	O
on	O
mainstream	O
social	O
networks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Verge	O
noted	O
in	O
November	O
2020	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
become	O
a	O
"	O
central	O
hub	O
"	O
for	O
the	O
Stop	O
the	O
Steal	O
conspiracy	O
theory	O
relating	O
to	O
the	O
2020	O
U.S.	O
presidential	O
election	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
analysis	O
of	O
posts	O
from	O
the	O
week	O
leading	O
up	O
to	O
the	O
Capitol	O
storming	O
found	O
that	O
87%	O
of	O
the	O
links	O
shared	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
were	O
to	O
misinformation	O
websites	O
,	O
including	O
Islamophobic	O
and	O
QAnon	O
sites	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Stanford	O
University	O
's	O
Freeman	O
Spogli	O
Institute	O
for	O
International	O
Studies	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
become	O
an	O
"	O
echo	O
chamber	O
"	O
for	O
"	O
unfounded	O
conspiratorial	O
allegations	O
of	O
deliberate	O
theft	O
and	O
plotting	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Matze	O
told	O
The	O
Forward	O
in	O
2019	O
that	O
he	O
was	O
unaware	O
of	O
antisemitic	O
content	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
but	O
he	O
was	O
unsurprised	O
it	O
was	O
there	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Political	O
scientist	O
Alison	O
Dagnes	O
has	O
said	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
stance	O
on	O
speech	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
:	O
"	O
I	O
do	O
n't	O
think	O
you	O
can	O
have	O
it	O
both	O
ways	O
....	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
late	O
2020	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
revised	O
their	O
site	O
guidelines	O
,	O
which	O
had	O
previously	O
prohibited	O
pornography	O
and	O
obscenity	O
,	O
to	O
permit	O
the	O
posting	O
of	O
"	O
adult	O
sex	O
or	O
nudity	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
review	O
by	O
The	O
Washington	O
Post	O
in	O
December	O
that	O
year	O
found	O
that	O
pornography	O
was	O
"	O
surging	O
"	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
and	O
"threaten[ed]	O
to	O
intrude	O
on	O
users	O
not	O
seeking	O
sexual	O
material	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
study	O
co-written	O
by	O
Annalise	O
Baines	O
,	O
Muhammad	O
Ittefaq	O
and	O
Mauryne	O
Abwao	O
published	O
in	O
the	O
journal	O
Vaccines	O
found	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
provided	O
an	O
echo	O
chamber	O
for	O
vaccine	O
misinformation	O
and	O
conspiracy	O
theories	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
describes	O
itself	O
as	O
a	O
free	O
speech	O
platform	O
,	O
and	O
its	O
founders	O
have	O
proclaimed	O
that	O
the	O
service	O
engages	O
in	O
minimal	O
moderation	O
and	O
will	O
not	O
fact-check	O
posts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
have	O
also	O
said	O
they	O
will	O
allow	O
posts	O
that	O
have	O
been	O
removed	O
or	O
flagged	O
as	O
misinformation	O
on	O
other	O
social	O
media	O
networks	O
such	O
as	O
Twitter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
you	O
can	O
say	O
it	O
on	O
the	O
street	O
of	O
New	O
York	O
,	O
you	O
can	O
say	O
it	O
on	O
Parler.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
service	O
has	O
been	O
popular	O
among	O
conservatives	O
who	O
allege	O
Twitter	B-Application
and	O
Facebook	B-Application
has	O
been	O
biased	O
against	O
them	O
when	O
moderating	O
content	O
or	O
flagging	O
misinformation	O
,	O
praising	O
Parler	B-Application
for	O
offering	O
an	O
alternative	O
to	O
these	O
mainstream	O
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
's	O
guidelines	O
disallow	O
content	O
including	O
blackmail	O
,	O
support	O
for	O
terrorism	O
,	O
false	O
rumors	O
,	O
promoting	O
marijuana	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
fighting	O
words	O
"	O
directed	O
towards	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
says	O
their	O
moderation	O
policy	O
is	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
positions	O
of	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
Federal	O
Communications	O
Commission	O
(	O
FCC	O
)	O
and	O
Supreme	O
Court	O
,	O
although	O
Gizmodo	O
has	O
described	O
this	O
as	O
"	O
nonsensical	O
"	O
,	O
noting	O
that	O
the	O
FCC	O
moderates	O
only	O
public	O
airwaves	O
,	O
not	O
internet	O
content	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
some	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
rules	O
are	O
more	O
restrictive	O
than	O
restrictions	O
imposed	O
by	O
either	O
the	O
FCC	O
or	O
the	O
Supreme	O
Court	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Independent	O
wrote	O
in	O
November	O
2020	O
,	O
"	O
Despite	O
positioning	O
itself	O
as	O
a	O
libertarian	O
platform	O
promoting	O
freedom	O
of	O
expression	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
community	O
guidelines	O
are	O
more	O
than	O
1,500	O
words	O
and	O
include	O
rules	O
that	O
go	O
far	O
beyond	O
legal	O
requirements.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Wired	O
wrote	O
in	O
November	O
2020	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
enforced	O
its	O
guidelines	O
inconsistently	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
the	O
service	O
either	O
"	O
prioritizes	O
conservative	O
speech	O
rather	O
than	O
free	O
speech	O
"	O
or	O
"	O
is	O
set	O
up	O
to	O
amplify	O
its	O
influencers	O
,	O
rather	O
than	O
create	O
a	O
space	O
for	O
anyone	O
to	O
be	O
heard	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
and	O
July	O
2020	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
banned	O
a	O
spate	O
of	O
left-wing	O
accounts	O
,	O
including	O
parody	O
accounts	O
and	O
accounts	O
that	O
were	O
critical	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
or	O
the	O
prevailing	O
viewpoints	O
on	O
the	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mic	O
wrote	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
used	O
the	O
personal	O
information	O
provided	O
during	O
signup	O
to	O
ban	O
those	O
they	O
had	O
identified	O
as	O
"	O
teenage	O
leftists	O
"	O
;	O
Will	O
Duffield	O
of	O
the	O
Cato	O
Institute	O
wrote	O
that	O
Matze	O
had	O
also	O
apparently	O
instituted	O
a	O
blanket	O
ban	O
on	O
antifa	O
supporters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
a	O
surge	O
in	O
popularity	O
among	O
conservatives	O
in	O
November	O
2020	O
,	O
The	O
Independent	O
noted	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
again	O
been	O
accused	O
of	O
removing	O
left-leaning	O
users	O
and	O
removing	O
content	O
that	O
contradicted	O
or	O
was	O
critical	O
of	O
popular	O
opinions	O
expressed	O
there	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2021	O
,	O
Ethan	B-Application
Zuckerman	I-Application
and	O
Chand	O
Rajendra-Nicolucci	O
wrote	O
in	O
a	O
report	O
for	O
the	O
Knight	O
First	O
Amendment	O
Institute	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
invitation	O
on	O
its	O
front	O
page	O
,	O
"	O
 '	O
Speak	O
freely	O
and	O
express	O
yourself	O
openly	O
,	O
without	O
fear	O
of	O
being	O
"	O
deplatformed	O
"	O
for	O
your	O
views	O
,	O
'	O
often	O
is	O
n't	O
borne	O
out	O
in	O
reality	O
as	O
Parler	B-Application
regularly	O
bans	O
trolls	O
who	O
hold	O
opposing	O
viewpoints.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
June	O
30	O
,	O
2020	O
,	O
after	O
the	O
wave	O
of	O
bans	O
,	O
Matze	O
published	O
a	O
Parler	B-Application
post	O
outlining	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
service	O
's	O
rules	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Slate	O
and	O
Gizmodo	O
noted	O
that	O
the	O
top	O
reply	O
to	O
Matze	O
's	O
post	O
identified	O
that	O
"	O
Twitter	B-Application
allows	O
four	O
of	O
the	O
five	O
things	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
censors.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
of	O
the	O
clauses	O
in	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
user	O
agreement	O
have	O
been	O
criticized	O
as	O
"	O
unusual	O
"	O
and	O
seemingly	O
contradictory	O
to	O
its	O
mission	O
,	O
including	O
one	O
that	O
allows	O
Parler	B-Application
to	O
remove	O
content	O
and	O
ban	O
users	O
"	O
at	O
any	O
time	O
and	O
for	O
any	O
reason	O
or	O
no	O
reason	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
one	O
that	O
would	O
require	O
a	O
user	O
to	O
pay	O
for	O
any	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
legal	O
expenses	O
incurred	O
as	O
a	O
result	O
of	O
their	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ars	O
Technica	O
reported	O
in	O
November	O
2020	O
that	O
the	O
clause	O
requiring	O
users	O
to	O
cover	O
legal	O
fees	O
had	O
been	O
removed	O
from	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
user	O
agreement	O
following	O
negative	O
media	O
coverage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Matze	O
told	O
The	O
Washington	O
Post	O
he	O
does	O
not	O
see	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
guidelines	O
as	O
contradictory	O
to	O
its	O
stance	O
on	O
free	O
speech	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
a	O
team	O
of	O
200	O
volunteer	O
moderators	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
November	O
2020	O
,	O
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
reported	O
all	O
moderation	O
was	O
still	O
being	O
handled	O
by	O
volunteers	O
,	O
which	O
Parler	B-Application
calls	O
"	O
community	O
jurors	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2021	O
,	O
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
reported	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
increased	O
its	O
moderation	O
team	O
to	O
600	O
people	O
,	O
and	O
began	O
paying	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2021	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
executives	O
acknowledged	O
that	O
rules-violating	O
content	O
had	O
remained	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
,	O
which	O
they	O
attributed	O
to	O
their	O
volunteer	O
team	O
of	O
moderators	O
being	O
overwhelmed	O
by	O
large	O
backlogs	O
of	O
posts	O
to	O
review	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
executives	O
also	O
reported	O
there	O
had	O
been	O
an	O
increase	O
in	O
calls	O
for	O
violence	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
leading	O
up	O
to	O
the	O
riots	O
at	O
the	O
Capitol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
's	O
chief	O
of	O
policy	O
,	O
Amy	O
Peikoff	O
,	O
told	O
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
she	O
had	O
directed	O
moderators	O
to	O
report	O
such	O
threats	O
to	O
law	O
enforcement	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
she	O
"	O
was	O
concerned	O
that	O
there	O
was	O
actually	O
going	O
to	O
be	O
some	O
sort	O
of	O
violence	O
on	O
the	O
6th	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
is	O
a	O
microblogging	O
service	O
that	O
is	O
both	O
a	O
website	O
and	O
an	O
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
being	O
removed	O
from	O
the	O
Apple	B-Application
App	I-Application
Store	I-Application
in	O
January	O
2021	O
,	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
app	O
with	O
added	O
content	O
filters	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
May	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
app	O
was	O
formerly	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
but	O
was	O
also	O
removed	O
in	O
January	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlike	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
the	O
feed	O
of	O
postscalled	O
"	O
parleys	O
"	O
from	O
followed	O
accounts	O
appears	O
to	O
a	O
user	O
chronologically	O
,	O
instead	O
of	O
through	O
an	O
algorithm-based	O
selection	O
process	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parleys	O
are	O
limited	O
to	O
1,000	O
characters	O
in	O
length	O
,	O
and	O
users	O
can	O
"	O
vote	O
"	O
or	O
"	O
echo	O
"	O
the	O
posts	O
of	O
other	O
users	O
whom	O
they	O
follow	O
,	O
functions	O
that	O
have	O
been	O
compared	O
to	O
Twitter	B-Application
's	O
"	O
like	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
retweet	O
"	O
functions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
refers	O
to	O
users	O
of	O
its	O
service	O
as	O
Parleyers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Forbes	O
described	O
Parler	B-Application
as	O
"	O
like	O
a	O
barebones	O
Twitter	B-Application
"	O
in	O
June	O
2020	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
same	O
month	O
,	O
Fast	O
Company	O
wrote	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
was	O
"	O
well-designed	O
and	O
organized	O
"	O
,	O
also	O
noting	O
its	O
similarity	O
to	O
Twitter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Conversation	O
described	O
the	O
service	O
in	O
July	O
2020	O
as	O
"	O
very	O
similar	O
to	O
Twitter	B-Application
in	O
appearance	O
and	O
function	O
,	O
albeit	O
clunkier	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
CNN	B-Architecture
has	O
said	O
Parler	B-Application
resembles	O
a	O
"	O
mashup	O
of	O
Twitter	B-Application
and	O
Instagram	B-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Creating	O
an	O
account	O
and	O
using	O
Parler	B-Application
is	O
free	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
point	O
of	O
registration	O
,	O
users	O
have	O
the	O
option	O
of	O
supplying	O
a	O
photo	O
of	O
themselves	O
and	O
a	O
scan	O
of	O
the	O
front	O
and	O
back	O
of	O
their	O
government-issued	O
photo	O
identification	O
to	O
have	O
their	O
account	O
verified	O
by	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
order	O
to	O
join	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
"	O
influencer	O
network	O
"	O
,	O
the	O
company	O
may	O
ask	O
for	O
users	O
 '	O
social	O
security	O
or	O
tax	O
identification	O
numbers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
the	O
requirement	O
for	O
ID	O
scans	O
to	O
become	O
verified	O
has	O
prompted	O
conspiracy	O
theories	O
about	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
retention	O
and	O
use	O
of	O
user	O
information	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
publications	O
and	O
researchers	O
have	O
criticized	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
security	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
November	O
2020	O
,	O
security	O
researcher	O
Aubrey	O
Cottle	O
renamed	O
an	O
already-verified	O
Parler	B-Application
account	O
to	O
spoof	O
the	O
identity	O
of	O
Ron	O
Watkins	O
,	O
the	O
former	O
site	O
administrator	O
of	O
8chan	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Speaking	O
to	O
The	O
Washington	O
Post	O
after	O
the	O
hoax	O
,	O
Cottle	O
described	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
security	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
joke	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Daily	O
Dot	O
also	O
described	O
"	O
what	O
appeared	O
to	O
be	O
some	O
pretty	O
serious	O
security	O
flaws	O
"	O
in	O
Parler	B-Application
in	O
a	O
report	O
pertaining	O
to	O
the	O
incident	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Watkins	O
himself	O
was	O
vocally	O
critical	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
and	O
its	O
security	O
on	O
Twitter	B-Application
after	O
the	O
spoofing	O
incident	O
,	O
describing	O
the	O
service	O
as	O
"	O
compromised	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
in	O
mid-November	O
,	O
security	O
researcher	O
Kevin	O
Abosch	O
claimed	O
to	O
have	O
discovered	O
weaknesses	O
in	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
user	O
verification	O
information	O
,	O
alleging	O
5,000	O
accounts	O
were	O
compromised	O
in	O
July	O
2020	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
late	O
November	O
,	O
no	O
evidence	O
that	O
the	O
site	O
used	O
vulnerable	O
WordPress	B-Application
technology	O
as	O
claimed	O
had	O
surfaced	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2021	O
,	O
following	O
the	O
storming	O
of	O
the	O
Capitol	O
and	O
just	O
before	O
Parler	B-Application
went	O
offline	O
,	O
a	O
researcher	O
scraped	B-Application
roughly	O
eighty	O
terabytes	O
of	O
public	O
Parler	B-Application
posts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
scraped	B-Application
data	O
included	O
more	O
than	O
a	O
million	O
videos	O
,	O
which	O
maintained	O
GPS	O
metadata	O
identifying	O
the	O
exact	O
locations	O
where	O
the	O
videos	O
were	O
recorded	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
text	O
and	O
images	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Ars	O
Technica	O
and	O
Wired	O
,	O
the	O
reason	O
the	O
researcher	O
was	O
able	O
to	O
scrape	O
the	O
data	O
so	O
easily	O
was	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
website	O
's	O
poor	O
coding	O
quality	O
and	O
security	O
flaws	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
was	O
no	B-Protocol
authentication	I-Protocol
or	O
rate	O
limiting	O
on	O
the	O
API	O
,	O
and	O
deleted	O
posts	O
were	O
"	O
soft	O
deleted	O
"	O
:	O
a	O
flag	O
was	O
added	O
to	O
hide	O
them	O
,	O
but	O
they	O
were	O
not	O
actually	O
deleted	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Wired	O
,	O
although	O
all	O
posts	O
downloaded	O
by	O
the	O
researcher	O
were	O
public	O
,	O
because	O
Parler	B-Application
did	O
n't	O
scrub	O
metadata	O
,	O
GPS	O
coordinates	O
of	O
many	O
users	O
 '	O
homes	O
had	O
likely	O
been	O
exposed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
was	O
founded	O
in	O
2018	O
by	O
John	B-Application
Matze	I-Application
and	O
Jared	O
Thomson	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
November	O
2020	O
,	O
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
reported	O
that	O
Rebekah	O
Mercer	O
,	O
an	O
investor	O
known	O
for	O
her	O
support	O
of	O
conservative	O
individuals	O
and	O
organizations	O
,	O
had	O
helped	O
fund	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
report	O
was	O
published	O
,	O
Mercer	O
described	O
herself	O
as	O
having	O
"	O
started	O
Parler	B-Application
"	O
with	O
Matze	O
,	O
and	O
she	O
has	O
been	O
described	O
by	O
CNN	B-Architecture
as	O
a	O
co-founder	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
has	O
not	O
disclosed	O
the	O
identities	O
of	O
its	O
owners	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
Dan	O
Bongino	O
publicly	O
announced	O
in	O
June	O
2020	O
that	O
he	O
had	O
purchased	O
an	O
"	O
ownership	O
stake	O
"	O
of	O
unspecified	O
value	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
November	O
2020	O
,	O
Matze	O
wrote	O
in	O
a	O
Parler	B-Application
post	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
was	O
owned	O
by	O
"	O
myself	O
,	O
a	O
small	O
group	O
of	O
close	O
friends	O
and	O
employees	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
had	O
as	O
investors	O
Bongino	O
and	O
Parler	B-Application
chief	O
operating	O
officer	O
Jeffrey	O
Wernick	O
In	O
November	O
2020	O
,	O
a	O
manipulated	O
image	O
circulated	O
on	O
social	O
media	O
of	O
a	O
Fox	O
News	O
chyron	O
that	O
appeared	O
to	O
report	O
that	O
George	O
Soros	O
,	O
a	O
billionaire	O
philanthropist	O
and	O
the	O
frequent	O
target	O
of	O
antisemitic	O
conspiracy	O
theories	O
,	O
was	O
a	O
majority	O
owner	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Soros	O
does	O
not	O
own	O
Parler	B-Application
and	O
Fox	O
News	O
never	O
reported	O
the	O
claim	O
;	O
the	O
image	O
had	O
been	O
digitally	O
altered	O
from	O
a	O
photo	O
of	O
a	O
television	O
showing	O
a	O
Fox	O
broadcast	O
about	O
a	O
different	O
subject	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
29	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
board	O
,	O
controlled	O
by	O
Mercer	O
,	O
terminated	O
Matze	O
from	O
his	O
position	O
as	O
CEO	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
memo	O
Matze	O
sent	O
to	O
Fox	O
Business	O
,	O
he	O
claimed	O
that	O
"	O
I	O
did	O
not	O
participate	O
in	O
this	O
decision	O
"	O
to	O
terminate	O
him	O
and	O
that	O
he	O
had	O
"	O
met	O
constant	O
resistance	O
to	O
 [ his ] 	O
product	O
vision	O
,	O
 [ his ] 	O
strong	O
belief	O
in	O
free	O
speech	O
and	O
 [ his ] 	O
view	O
of	O
how	O
the	O
Parler	B-Application
site	O
should	O
be	O
managed	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Matze	O
also	O
had	O
all	O
his	O
Parler	B-Application
shares	O
stripped	O
from	O
him	O
when	O
he	O
was	O
fired	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
on	O
February	O
15	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
that	O
Mark	O
Meckler	O
would	O
serve	O
as	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
interim	O
CEO	O
while	O
they	O
searched	O
for	O
someone	O
to	O
take	O
the	O
position	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
on	O
May	O
17	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
that	O
they	O
had	O
named	O
George	O
Farmer	O
as	O
CEO	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prior	O
to	O
joining	O
Parler	B-Application
,	O
Farmer	O
worked	O
at	O
Red	O
Kite	O
,	O
a	O
hedge	O
fund	O
founded	O
by	O
his	O
father	O
Michael	O
Farmer	O
,	O
Baron	O
Farmer	O
,	O
worked	O
for	O
the	O
veteran	O
metals	O
trader	O
known	O
as	O
"	O
Mr	O
Copper	O
"	O
,	O
was	O
a	O
former	O
treasurer	O
of	O
the	O
United	O
Kingdom	O
's	O
Conservative	O
Party	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
the	O
former	O
head	O
of	O
Turning	O
Point	O
UK	O
,	O
a	O
British	O
offshoot	O
of	O
the	O
American	O
conservative	O
nonprofit	O
organization	O
Turning	O
Point	O
USA	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
March	O
2	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
NPR	O
reported	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
lawyers	O
had	O
written	O
in	O
a	O
legal	O
filing	O
that	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
valuation	O
was	O
"	O
approaching	O
$1billion	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
October	O
12	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
in	O
an	O
email	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
be	O
moving	O
their	O
headquarters	O
from	O
Henderson	O
,	O
Nevada	O
to	O
Nashville	O
,	O
Tennessee	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Seth	O
Dillon	O
,	O
the	O
CEO	O
of	O
conservative	O
Christian	O
news	O
satire	O
website	O
The	O
Babylon	O
Bee	O
,	O
has	O
been	O
listed	O
as	O
a	O
director	O
of	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
about	O
thirty	O
employees	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
also	O
planned	O
to	O
generate	O
revenue	O
based	O
on	O
an	O
ad	O
matching	O
scheme	O
whereby	O
companies	O
would	O
be	O
matched	O
with	O
Parler	B-Application
influencers	O
to	O
post	O
sponsored	O
content	O
,	O
with	O
Parler	B-Application
taking	O
a	O
percentage	O
of	O
each	O
deal	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Slate	O
has	O
questioned	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
business	O
model	O
,	O
writing	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
's	O
plan	O
to	O
rely	O
on	O
advertising	O
revenue	O
"	O
seems	O
far	O
from	O
foolproof	O
"	O
given	O
the	O
2020	O
advertising	O
boycotts	O
of	O
Facebook	B-Application
by	O
some	O
large	O
brands	O
who	O
objected	O
to	O
hateful	O
content	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
NBC	O
also	O
questioned	O
whether	O
corporations	O
would	O
be	O
interested	O
in	O
advertising	O
alongside	O
"	O
controversial	O
material	O
"	O
on	O
Parler	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
not	O
received	O
any	O
known	O
venture	O
capital	O
,	O
although	O
in	O
February	O
2021	O
,	O
Buzzfeed	O
News	O
reported	O
that	O
Parler	B-Application
had	O
recently	O
sought	O
to	O
obtain	O
funding	O
from	O
J	O
.	O
D	O
.	O
Vance	O
's	O
venture-capital	O
firm	O
Narya	O
Capital	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2022	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
raised	O
$20	O
million	O
in	O
funding	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2022	O
,	O
Parler	B-Application
announced	O
$16M	O
in	O
Series	O
B	O
funding	O
,	O
for	O
a	O
total	O
of	O
$56M	O
in	O
funding	O
to	O
date	O
.	O
</s>
