What you need to know
- Apple has announced that Parler can return to the App Store.
- The company says that Parler "has proposed updates to its app and the app's content moderation practices."
Parler, the controversial social media app that was banned back in January, is back on the App Store.
As reported by CNN, Apple has alerted Congress in a letter that the company has approved Parler to return to the App Store. The letter says that the app has made the necessary improvements to its moderation policy in order to detect and prevent hate speech from spreading on the platform.
The letter — addressed to Sen. Mike Lee and Rep. Ken Buck and obtained by CNN — explained that since the app was removed from Apple's platform in January for violations of its policies, Parler "has proposed updates to its app and the app's content moderation practices."On April 14, Apple's app review team told Parler that its proposed changes were sufficient, the letter continued. Now, all Parler needs to do is to flip the switch."Apple anticipates that the updated Parler app will become available immediately upon Parler releasing it," Apple's letter said.
Parler was banned from the App Store back in January in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Apple had found that the app did not have sufficient moderation to quell hate speech and threats of violence, and banned the app until it fixed these issues.
We have always supported diverse points of view being represented on the App Store, but there is no place on our platform for threats of violence and illegal activity. Parler has not taken adequate measures to address the proliferation of these threats to people's safety. We have suspended Parler from the App Store until they resolve these issues.
While Parler had argued its original ban was anti-competitive and that it was being targeted by the big tech companies, Apple's letter says that it being banned was "an independent decision" and that the company "did not coordinate or otherwise consult with Google or Amazon with respect to that decision."
Both Apple and Parler did not respond to requests for comment by CNN about today's change.
