Parler suspended from Google Play store over its role in the US Capitol siege

Google on January 8 reportedly announced that it is suspending the app Parler, which has a significant user base of President Donald Trump supporters, from its Play Store. Parler is a social network founded as a less moderated and more conservative-friendly alternative to Facebook and Twitter. The US microblogging and social networking site have a user base of conservatives, conspiracy theorists, and right-wing extremists. Google pulled the app from its store following the company’s role in the violent US Capitol siege on Wednesday. 

A Google spokesperson reportedly said that in order to protect user safety, the firm’s policies require that apps displaying user-generated content have moderation policies and enforcement that removes egregious content like posts that incite violence. The spokesperson added that in light of the “ongoing and urgent public safety threat” Google is suspending the app’s listing from the Play Store until it addresses the aforementioned issues. 

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Trump’s Twitter account permanently suspended 

Meanwhile, Parler’s suspension from the Google Play store comes after Twitter permanently suspended US President Donald Trump’s account over the risk of ‘incitement of violence’. Twitter said that after assessing the tweets in the context of a violent storming of the Capitol on Wednesday, it determined that Trump’s tweets violated the firm’s ‘Glorification of Violence’ policy and constituted immediate removal from the platform. 

In a blog post, Twitter said, “After reviewing of Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them — 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”. 

(Image: AP)

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