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- Parler is a social media app that attracted conservatives with its minimal content moderation policy.
- It was kicked off of major app stores after the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
- Google said that it was reinstated because the app has improved its content moderation.
Parler, a social media app that was a boon for Republicans, far-right extremists, and conspiracy theorists who were frustrated with moderation policies by major tech companies, will be restored to Google’s app store on Friday.
A spokesperson for the social media company told The New York Times that Parler agreed to adopt policies that would remove certain content from its app, but said that “the conversation isn’t over” and users can visit the website “as we intend it” on their desktops.
The move by Google comes more than a year after Parler was kicked off the search engine giant’s platform following the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. At the time, Google told Insider that its policies require removing posts that “incite violence” and that Parler repeatedly violated those rules.
Now, the social media company that touts itself as a “premier global free speech platform” will be stepping up its content moderation rules.
A Google spokesperson said in a statement to Insider that Parler has agreed to comply with the company’s Play app store rules, including having moderation policies and enforcement that removes egregious content such as posts that incite violence.
“As we’ve long stated, apps are able to appear on Google Play provided they comply with Play’s developer policies,” the spokesperson said. “All apps on Google Play that feature user-generated content (UGC) are required to implement robust moderation practices that prohibit objectionable content, provide an in-app system for reporting objectionable UGC, take action against that UGC where appropriate, and remove or block abusive users who violate the app’s terms of use and/or user policy.”
Parler’s chief marketing officer, Christina Cravens, told The Times that, in order to comply with Google’s Play app store rules, the company hid not-safe-for-work content and removed hate speech based on race, sex, and sexuality.
“While Parler believes the best way to address the problems of hate and divisiveness in today’s culture is to allow more speech, not less, we are still happy to do business with those who think differently, on the terms on which we do agree,” Cravens said in a statement to The Times. “The conversation isn’t over, and those who want to see Parler as we intend it may always do so in the browser at Parler.com.”
Cravens did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.
The social media app was also removed from Apple’s app store and Amazon’s web hosting services after the Capitol riot, effectively taking it offline for a month before it found a new web host.
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