Parler social network is now offline after Amazon pulls support

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By VT

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Parler, the American social media network that has become a preferred platform by some conservatives, has been shut down after losing total Amazon support in the aftermath of the Capitol riots.

Per BBC News, the app and social media service had been reliant on Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud computing service to deliver a conservative alternative to Twitter.

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Credit: PA Images

Per The Independent, the tech company reportedly took action after discovering "a steady increase in this violent content on [the] website, all of which violates our terms."

Meanwhile, Google and Apple have also taken Parler off their app stores, claiming that it failed to comply with their content-moderation requirements.

Discussing the app's shutdown in an interview with Fox News on Sunday, January 10, Parler Chief Executive John Matze stated:

"Every vendor from text message services to email providers to our lawyers all ditched us too.

"We're going to try our best to get back online as quickly as possible, but we're having a lot of trouble because every vendor we talk to says they won't work with us because if Apple doesn't approve and Google doesn't approve, they won't."

Earlier last week, incumbent president Donald Trump was permanently blocked from Twitter and indefinitely banned from Facebook "due to the risk of further incitement of violence."

The bans came after Donald Trump posted a video from the White House to Facebook and Twitter, in which he urged protesters to "go home", before adding: "We love you," and then continuing to make unfounded claims of electoral fraud.

Trump stated: "We had an election stolen from us. This was a fraudulent election but we can't play into the hands of these people but we have to have peace."

In a statement posted to Twitter's blog site, a spokesperson for the social media giant wrote:

"After close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them — specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter — we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence. 

"In the context of horrific events this week, we made it clear on Wednesday that additional violations of the Twitter Rules would potentially result in this very course of action.

"Our public interest framework exists to enable the public to hear from elected officials and world leaders directly. It is built on a principle that the people have a right to hold power to account in the open. 

"However, we made it clear going back years that these accounts are not above our rules entirely and cannot use Twitter to incite violence, among other things. We will continue to be transparent around our policies and their enforcement."

Meanwhile, per the Washington Post, in a statement made on Thursday, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg stated:

"The shocking events of the last 24 hours clearly demonstrate that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time in office to undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power to his elected successor, Joe Biden.

"His decision to use his platform to condone rather than condemn the actions of his supporters at the Capitol building has rightly disturbed people in the US and around the world.

"We removed these statements yesterday because we judged that their effect - and likely their intent -- would be to provoke further violence.

"Following the certification of the election results by Congress, the priority for the whole country must now be to ensure that the remaining 13 days and the days after inauguration pass peacefully and in accordance with established democratic norms."

Zuckerberg continued:

"Over the last several years, we have allowed President Trump to use our platform consistent with our own rules, at times removing content or labeling his posts when they violate our policies.

"We did this because we believe that the public has a right to the broadest possible access to political speech, even controversial speech.

"But the current context is now fundamentally different, involving use of our platform to incite violent insurrection against a democratically elected government. We believe the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great.

"Therefore, we are extending the block we have placed on his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transition of power is complete."

In the meantime, Trump himself has promised an "orderly transition" of power on Joe Biden's inauguration on January 20 - adding that he still believes Biden's victory to be fraudulent.

Parler social network is now offline after Amazon pulls support

vt-author-image

By VT

Article saved!Article saved!

Parler, the American social media network that has become a preferred platform by some conservatives, has been shut down after losing total Amazon support in the aftermath of the Capitol riots.

Per BBC News, the app and social media service had been reliant on Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud computing service to deliver a conservative alternative to Twitter.

 wp-image-12632271
Credit: PA Images

Per The Independent, the tech company reportedly took action after discovering "a steady increase in this violent content on [the] website, all of which violates our terms."

Meanwhile, Google and Apple have also taken Parler off their app stores, claiming that it failed to comply with their content-moderation requirements.

Discussing the app's shutdown in an interview with Fox News on Sunday, January 10, Parler Chief Executive John Matze stated:

"Every vendor from text message services to email providers to our lawyers all ditched us too.

"We're going to try our best to get back online as quickly as possible, but we're having a lot of trouble because every vendor we talk to says they won't work with us because if Apple doesn't approve and Google doesn't approve, they won't."

Earlier last week, incumbent president Donald Trump was permanently blocked from Twitter and indefinitely banned from Facebook "due to the risk of further incitement of violence."

The bans came after Donald Trump posted a video from the White House to Facebook and Twitter, in which he urged protesters to "go home", before adding: "We love you," and then continuing to make unfounded claims of electoral fraud.

Trump stated: "We had an election stolen from us. This was a fraudulent election but we can't play into the hands of these people but we have to have peace."

In a statement posted to Twitter's blog site, a spokesperson for the social media giant wrote:

"After close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them — specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter — we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence. 

"In the context of horrific events this week, we made it clear on Wednesday that additional violations of the Twitter Rules would potentially result in this very course of action.

"Our public interest framework exists to enable the public to hear from elected officials and world leaders directly. It is built on a principle that the people have a right to hold power to account in the open. 

"However, we made it clear going back years that these accounts are not above our rules entirely and cannot use Twitter to incite violence, among other things. We will continue to be transparent around our policies and their enforcement."

Meanwhile, per the Washington Post, in a statement made on Thursday, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg stated:

"The shocking events of the last 24 hours clearly demonstrate that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time in office to undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power to his elected successor, Joe Biden.

"His decision to use his platform to condone rather than condemn the actions of his supporters at the Capitol building has rightly disturbed people in the US and around the world.

"We removed these statements yesterday because we judged that their effect - and likely their intent -- would be to provoke further violence.

"Following the certification of the election results by Congress, the priority for the whole country must now be to ensure that the remaining 13 days and the days after inauguration pass peacefully and in accordance with established democratic norms."

Zuckerberg continued:

"Over the last several years, we have allowed President Trump to use our platform consistent with our own rules, at times removing content or labeling his posts when they violate our policies.

"We did this because we believe that the public has a right to the broadest possible access to political speech, even controversial speech.

"But the current context is now fundamentally different, involving use of our platform to incite violent insurrection against a democratically elected government. We believe the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great.

"Therefore, we are extending the block we have placed on his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transition of power is complete."

In the meantime, Trump himself has promised an "orderly transition" of power on Joe Biden's inauguration on January 20 - adding that he still believes Biden's victory to be fraudulent.