What is Parler? Conservative Social- Media App Denied Apple’s App Store Access

Apple and Alphabet Inc.’s Google previously said they removed Parler from their respective app stores because the company hadn’t taken adequate measures to address a proliferation of threats to people’s safety. Amazon.com Inc.’s cloud-computing business also withdrew its services, causing Parler to briefly go dark before it returned online in February.

Parler has been seeking to return to Apple’s App Store, but the tech giant has declined to allow it to return, according to a person familiar with the matter. Bloomberg earlier reported that Apple in February told a Parler executive that the social network hadn’t made enough changes to bring it into compliance with its app-store guidelines.

Parler isn’t currently pursuing efforts to return to the Google Play store, a spokesman said, as it is possible for Android users to access its app other ways. The company provides instructions for doing that on its website.

On Feb. 15, Parler said it was relaunching its platform that had grown to more than 20 million users, up from 15 million before its website and apps were driven offline.

Parler has a new data-storage provider, SkySilk Inc., and a new chief executive, Mark Meckler, who was appointed to the position on an interim basis after the company ousted former CEO John Matze amid disagreement over the social network’s future.

Before going dark, Parler had been growing quickly in popularity among conservatives, especially after the 2020 U.S. presidential election. Some users turned to the platform to share threats ahead of the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and others shared posts on Parler after storming the building, according to social-media researchers and screenshots of posts viewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Here’s what we know about Parler and its users and what its future holds.

What is Parler?

Parler launched in 2018, billing itself as an unbiased, free-speech alternative to larger social platforms such as those operated by Facebook Inc. and Twitter Inc. The company’s looser policies on content moderation attracted high-profile conservative media personalities such as Fox News host Sean Hannity as well as supporters of former President Donald Trump, including some who have promoted baseless claims that the 2020 election was stolen, at a time when other platforms were cracking down on this kind of speech.

Parler had also been embraced by people who were banned by other large social networks, such as far-right talk-show host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and supporters of the self-described “Western chauvinist” group the Proud Boys.

What is the controversy around the service?

Tech companies have increased scrutiny of content that appears on their platforms in recent years and sharpened their focus on Parler in the wake of the Capitol riot.

In addition to Apple and Google, other vendors that stopped providing technology services to Parler for similar reasons include Twilio Inc. and Okta Inc.

Amazon said it kicked Parler off its cloud-computing servers, citing several instances of violent content that violated its rules. One example the tech giant identified from a post in early December said: “My wishes for a racewar have never been higher. I find myself thinking about killing n—s and jews more and more often.”

How is Parler different than larger social networks?

Before its roughly monthlong disruption, Parler generally allowed users to engage in any constitutionally protected speech, and it relied on users to apply filters that could hide certain types of content. The platform didn’t fact-check statements from high-profile users or restrict offensive language. There was also no prohibition on gory or adult content, so long as it was tagged as sensitive by the creator, executives have said.

Parler also used a volunteer community of content moderators, though executives said the company was working to add more, including some in full-time roles. Those moderators had been overwhelmed and often faced large backlogs in handling offending posts as the service quickly grew in popularity, executives said.

By contrast, Twitter and Facebook each rely on thousands of people dedicated to content moderation and have far stricter rules on what users can and can’t post. The companies have labeled or removed users’ posts, and in some cases closed users’ accounts, for spreading misinformation, inciting violence and coordinating attacks, among other policy violations.

Parler resumed service with new community guidelines on its website that say the platform is “viewpoint neutral.” It added that it wouldn’t knowingly allow it to be used as a tool for crime or unlawful acts.

Who runs Parler and who is financially backing it?

Parler is backed by investors such as Republican donor Rebekah Mercer, the daughter of hedge-fund investor Robert Mercer, and conservative talk-show host Dan Bongino. The Mercers have previously financed a number of conservative causes.

Parler had been run by Mr. Matze, a software engineer who lives in Henderson, Nev., before his late-January dismissal and subsequent replacement by Mr. Meckler as interim chief. Mr. Matze’s LinkedIn profile says he previously worked mainly at startups and at Amazon in 2017. In a statement, he said he met resistance from the company’s board to his product vision and pushed for “a more effective approach to content moderation.” Mr. Bongino responded with a Facebook video saying that Mr. Matze bore responsibility for “really bad decisions” that led to Parler being taken offline as well as problems with the app’s stability.

Mr. Matze previously told the Journal that Ms. Mercer’s backing was dependent on the platform allowing users to control what they see. Ms. Mercer wrote in a post on Parler that she and Mr. Matze started the company “to provide a neutral platform for free speech, as our founders intended.”

Why did Parler sue Amazon?

Parler sued Amazon on Jan. 11 in Seattle federal court, claiming the tech giant kicked the social network off its cloud servers for political and anticompetitive reasons. In its complaint, Parler accused Amazon of trying to “reduce competition in the microblogging services market to the benefit of Twitter.”

Amazon responded that the social network’s lawsuit is “no more than a meritless claim for breach of contract” and said Parler’s antitrust claim doesn’t show how competition is harmed. If there is any breach, Amazon said, “it is Parler’s demonstrated failure and inability to identify and remove such content.”

A federal judge in January rejected Parler’s bid to force Amazon to resume providing services to the company, ruling that Parler didn’t meet the threshold for granting such a request.

Parler dropped the federal lawsuit in March and filed a new lawsuit in Washington state court that made similar allegations

What does Parler do next?

Parler said it was searching for a permanent CEO and that it had hired Mr. Meckler, who is affiliated with groups such as the Tea Party Patriots, to help guide the company through its relaunch.

To resume service, Parler is now using data servers from SkySilk, which is based in the Los Angeles area. SkySilk said it “feels that Parler is taking the necessary steps to better monitor its platform.”

Parler’s website shows that the social network still counts Mr. Hannity and other well-known conservatives among its users.

Parler said it was initially restoring service to existing users before opening its platform up to new members. Some users experienced problems with their accounts when Parler resurfaced.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D., N.Y.), chairwoman of the House Oversight Committee, in January sent a letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation requesting a probe into the role Parler played in the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Ms. Maloney also asked the agency to review Parler’s financing.

Write to Sarah E. Needleman at [email protected]