American rapper Kanye West announced on Monday his intention to buy the social network Parler, which is especially popular among US conservatives and those close to Donald Trump.
“In a world where conservative views are considered controversial, we must ensure that we have the right to express ourselves freelyHe, who now calls himself Ye, said in a press release issued by Parler.
The amount of the deal, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022, was not disclosed.
Kanye West has been at the center of a number of controversies in recent days, particularly for wearing a t-shirt with an anti-racist slogan.Black Lives Matterand for posting comments deemed anti-Semitic on Instagram and Twitter. His accounts were curtailed after these posts highlighted the supposed influence of the Jewish community.
“Ye is taking a revolutionary step into the free speech media space, and you’ll never have to worry about being banned from social media again.said Parler CEO George Farmer. “Once again, Ye proves he’s one step ahead of the mainstream media narrativeMr. Farmer added: The network calls itself “a driving force in the fight against Big Tech, Big Government, censorship and repeal culture“.
11 million downloads
Launched in 2018, Parler saw its popularity rise after Donald Trump was permanently banned from Twitter shortly after the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, in which the former US president was accused of inciting violence among his supporters.
But Apple and Google, lamenting the growing threat of online violence and illegal activity, quickly removed it from their download platforms. Amazon Web Services (AWS) had also decided to no longer host it on its servers, effectively removing the platform.
Parler has been readmitted to the App Store from April 2021 and the Google Play Store from September 2021. According to SensorTower, the app was downloaded 11 million times, including only 141,000 between April 2021 and January 2022.
Truth Social, the network launched by Mr. Trump, was reapproved by the Google Play Store last week, agreeing to update its policy on removing messages that incite violence.
Source: Le Figaro
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.