New Parler coming soon? (Photo Illustration by Thiago Prudêncio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
SOPA Images/LightRocket by Getty Images
Starboard Digital Media, an international digital conglomerate announced that they had purchased Parler on Friday. Parler is a social media site that has become very popular with conservatives since former president Donald Trump left Twitter and Facebook in January 2021 after the riots at the United States Capitol Building.
But the service failed to gain the same popularity of Twitter which it had mostly copied. Trump’s launch of his Twitter competitor, Truth Social, in the past year didn’t help matters. Starboard (formerly Olympic Media) replaced Parler with just a single page on Friday, which announced the upcoming changes.
No reasonable person would believe that an exclusive Twitter for conservatives could be a profitable business. George Farmer did an outstanding job in successfully leading Parlement’s IT and cloud infrastructure into an industry that is critical to the company.
The company added, “Starboard will be the best home for Parler’s brand and long-term loyal customers.”
Strategic Assessment
Parler, the app owned by new owners of Parler, will be removed to allow for an assessment. When it returns, it seeks to serve what it said are marginalized or even outright censored communities – even extending beyond domestic politics.
Ryan Coyne told this journalist via email: “From a technological perspective, Parler has been built to allow individuals to freely speak.”
Ryan said that the mission of Starboard and its use cases will continue to be the same. “Advancements in AI technology, along with the existing code base and other new features, provide an opportunity for Starboard to begin servicing unsupported online communities – building a home for them away from the ad-hoc regulatory hand of platforms that hate them.”
Ryan responded that Starboard “will work to engage with the community on different platforms.”
Finding An Audience
It’s not surprising that this move was made. Truth Social, as noted above, was designed to satisfy conservatives’ desire for a platform other than Twitter. Many returned to Twitter after Elon Musk purchased the company. Now the micro-blogging broadcast space seems more fragmented than ever – with no shortage of Twitter alternatives attempting to court different communities.
Parler may find it difficult to settle in, but there are still many other options.
The first question to ask speaks to who it could target – but also what is meant by a marginalized community?
Cliff Lampe said, “It is not clear what new owners intend to do,” he added. Dr. Lampe was a professor of Information in the School of Information of Michigan and the associate dean of academic affairs.
Lampe: “Marginalized groups have many options for communication, depending on their level of marginalization.” “I put that in quotes because of course some people are marginalized because they are engaged in illegal or non-normative activities – like pedophilia or gang membership. Others are marginalized due to identity features that are more normative and less anti-social, yet still put under pressure by the dominant majority.
Second, perhaps more important is the question of what Starboard can do to differentiate itself in a market that has become increasingly competitive.
Lampe added that it was unclear “what Parler’s advantage over other sites such as Reddit and Gab or Signal, Telegram 4chan 4chan would be.” The brand’s association with the attacks of January 6, it would seem, will only appeal to right-aligned minorities.
Maybe that’s why Starboard pulled the platform down completely and may be looking for a new start in later this year. Parler will not be open again until the paper has dried and the transaction is closed.
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