By Fred Warner

Parler is a new social media site dedicated to free speech. Social Media Giants like Google, Twitter, and Facebook have been in the news a lot lately, because they are censoring conservative speech in particular. There have been very high profile meetings on Capitol Hill, a noticeable increase in Social Journalism articles, and vlogs, and even in meetings with the President of the United States. There is a obvious trend among the three biggest websites to mute conservative speech by hiding behind their terms of service. They are not upholding the first Constitutional Amendment of free speech. They are actively meddling in the 2020 election.

Community Guidelines Vs. the User

Individual content providers who use YouTube as a platform sometimes clash with a segment of their audience. YouTube increasingly views this as their responsibility to censor the content as to avoid the viewer from being hurt by “hate speech.” YouTube’s position is that censorship is for the good of the community, although this flies in the face of free speech. Enter Social Media’s newest free speech home, Parler.

Fighting Censorship using the First Amendment.

Parler’s Community Guidelines states:

“Parler desires to stand behind the definition of free speech as laid out in the United States Constitution in order to firmly and clearly state the type of communication that is allowed and that is prohibited within our platform.”

And further…

“Free speech allows users to express themselves on their own profile and spread their message to their followers but it also allows users to avoid speech they do not want to see by blocking/banning or muting content they do not want to see.”

Users on Parler have settings they can control for their Privacy, Security, Notifications, Moderation, and it also includes Legal definitions of how the site works. One of the more striking aspects of Parler’s Legal position is referencing the Federal Communications Commission and the FCC guidelines for speech in the public sphere. It goes so far as to advise users on the procedure to file a formal complaint with the FCC if they feel a particular post has violated their sensibilities.

Parler Aims to be the Future of Social Media

Parler’s practices are based on the U.S. Constitution and the established laws of the United States. I have found Parler embraces the diversity of its community through good feedback, with clear expectations, and providing assistance with user options. This includes both posting and reading their site with the FCC established guidelines for anyone wanting to protest a post. There is deffinately a sense of respect for shared responsibility and dignity for the posters and readers of the site’s content.

No More Fighting Vague “Community Guidelines.”

Parler is focusing on free speech and a place where expression is allowed. It’s a place where communicating freely is assured. Parler is an American company, Constitutionally inspired, and FCC compliant Social Media. Its a place where one can research NEWS topics and other various articles from the “Legacy Media” and Social Journalism sites. Parler seems to have their finger on the pulse of many Americans who are feeling the crush of censorship by the current social media landscape. They are certainly onto something in light of the recent admissions from the tech giants.

My Experience Using Parler

I have gone from less than 100 followers to over 600 in less than two days. There is a Right Now page that shows trending topics on three of the four available header row icons. The topics update spontaneously as trends do. On the Home, Discover, and Profile screens, a list is kept current of potential people to Follow. The Discover page lets you view posts, news, hashtags, as well as users with a search tool at the top center of the page. Parler seems to be on track as an alternative to Twitter. It protects the free exchange of ideas, by not interfering in the marketplace of ideas. That is as American as it gets.

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