Page 12 - aruba-today-20210111

A12 TECHNOLOGY
Monday 11 January 2021
Parler squeezed as Trump seeks new online megaphone

By FRANK BAJAK Capitol rebellion, as West-
AP Technology Writer ern democracies led by
BOSTON (AP) — President Nazism-haunted Germany
Donald Trump has been already do.
kicked off of most main- David Kaye, a University of
stream social media plat- California-Irvine law profes-
forms following his sup- sor and former U.N. special
porters’ siege on the U.S. rapporteur on free speech
Capitol. But it remains to be believes the Parlers of the
seen how fast or where — if world will also face pres-
anywhere — on the inter- sure from the public and
net he will be able to reach law enforcement as will
his followers. little-known sites where fur-
The far right-friendly Parler ther pre-inauguration dis-
had been the leading can- ruption is now apparently
didate, at least until Google being organized. They
and Apple removed it from include MeWe, Wimkin,
their app stores and Ama- TheDonald.win and Storm-
zon decided to boot it off front, according to a re-
its web hosting service by port released Saturday by
midnight Pacific time on The Alethea Group, which
Sunday. tracks disinformation.
Parler’s CEO said that Kaye rejects arguments by
could knock it offline for a U.S. conservatives including
week, though that might the president’s former U.N.
prove optimistic. And even ambassador, Nikki Haley,
if it finds a friendlier web- that the Trump ban sav-
hosting service, without a aged the First Amendment,
smartphone app, it’s hard which prohibits the gov-
to imagine Parler gaining In this Thursday, June 18, 2020 file photo, President Donald Trump looks at his phone during a ernment from restricting
mainstream success. roundtable with governors on the reopening of America's small businesses, in the State Dining free expression. “Silencing
The 2-year-old magnet Room of the White House in Washington. people, not to mention the
for the far right claims Associated Press President of the US, is what
more than 12 million users, Sunday. It reminded Par- sible via web browser. Los- including former national happens in China not our
though mobile app analyt- ler in a letter, first reported ing Amazon Web Services security advisor Michael country,” Haley tweeted.
ics firm Sensor Tower puts by Buzzfeed, that it had will mean Parler needs to Flynn in a sweeping purge “It’s not like the platforms’
the number at 10 million informed it in the past few scramble to find another of accounts promoting the rules are draconian. Peo-
worldwide, with 8 million weeks of 98 examples of web host, in addition to the QAnon conspiracy theory ple don’t get caught in
in the U.S. That’s a fraction posts “that clearly encour- re-engineering. and the Capitol insurrec- violations unless they do
of the 89 million followers age and incite violence” Trump may also launch tion. Some had hundreds of something clearly against
Trump had on Twitter. and said the platform “pos- his own platform. But that thousands of followers. the rules,” said Kaye. And
Still, Parler might be at- es a very real risk to public won’t happen overnight, In a statement Friday, not just individual citizens
tractive to Trump since it’s safety.” and free speech experts Trump said: “We have have free speech rights.
where his sons Eric and Don Parler CEO John Matze de- anticipate growing pres- been negotiating with “The companies have their
Jr. are already active. Parler cried the punishments as “a sure on all social media various other sites, and will freedom of speech, too.”
hit headwinds, though, on coordinated attack by the platforms to curb incendi- have a big announcement While initially arguing their
Friday as Google yanked tech giants to kill competi- ary speech as Americans soon, while we also look at need to be neutral on
its smartphone app from its tion in the marketplace. take stock of Wednesday’s the possibilities of building speech, Twitter and Face-
app store for allowing post- We were too successful violent takeover of the out our own platform in the book gradually yielded to
ings that seek “to incite on- too fast,” he said in a Sat- U.S. Capitol by a Trump- near future.” public pressure drawing the
going violence in the U.S.” urday night post, saying it incited mob. Twitter ended Gab is another potential line especially when the
Apple followed suit on Sat- was possible Parler would Trump’s nearly 12-year run landing spot for Trump. But so-called Plandemic video
urday evening after giving be unavailable for up to a on Friday. In shuttering his it, too, has had troubles with emerged early in the coro-
Parler 24 hours to address week “as we rebuild from account, it cited a tweet to internet hosting. Google navirus pandemic urging
complaints it was being scratch.” his 89 million followers that and Apple both booted people not to wear masks,
used to “plan and facili- Earlier, Matze complained he planned to skip Presi- it from their app stores in noted civic media profes-
tate yet further illegal and of being scapegoated. dent-elect Joe Biden’s Jan. 2017 and it was left inter- sor Ethan Zuckerman of the
dangerous activities.” Pub- “Standards not applied to 20 inauguration, saying it net-homeless for a time the University of Massachusetts-
lic safety issues will need to Twitter, Facebook or even gave rioters license to con- following year due to anti- Amherst.
be resolved before it is re- Apple themselves, apply to verge on Washington once Semitic posts attributed to Zuckerman expects the
stored, Apple said. Parler.” He said he “won’t again. the man accused of killing Trump de-platforming may
A message seeking com- cave to politically motivat- Facebook and Instagram 11 people at a Pittsburgh spur important online shifts.
ment from Parler was sent ed companies and those have suspended Trump synagogue. Microsoft also First, there may be an ac-
Sunday on whether the authoritarians who hate at least until Inauguration terminated a web-hosting celerated splintering of the
company plans to change free speech.” Day. Twitch and Snapchat contract. social media world along
its policies and enforce- Losing access to the app also disabled Trump’s ac- Online speech experts ex- ideological lines.
ment around these issues. stores of Google and Apple counts, while Shopify took pect social media compa- “Trump will pull a lot of au-
Amazon struck another — whose operating systems down online stores af- nies led by Facebook, Twit- dience wherever he goes,”
blow Saturday, inform- power hundreds of millions filiated with the president ter and Google’s YouTube he said. That could mean
ing Parler it would need to of smartphones — severely and Reddit removed a to more vigorously police more platforms with small-
look for a new web-hosting limits Parler’s reach, though Trump subgroup. Twitter hate speech and incite- er, more ideologically iso-
service effective midnight it will continue to be acces- also banned Trump loyalists ment in the wake of the lated audiences.q