How banning Donald Trump from social media prompted mass exodus to 'alt-tech' apps like Parler and Gab
A wave of former president Donald J Trump's supporters have found refuge in fringe alternative social media sites and services after the 45th POTUS was banned across mainstream social media platforms earlier this year. These smaller "alt-tech" sites promise less content moderation and a respite from "cancel culture."
Just days after Trump's was purged across social media, a number of alternative apps and services on Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store dominated the list of the most downloaded apps. Some of these smaller platforms sought to mirror some of the salient features of their big tech counterparts like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube promising far fewer restrictions and regulations on what users can post and discuss. It's worth noting that the rise of apps like Gab, MeWe and Parler -- which is temporarily inactive after Amazon’s withdrawal of web hosting services and the firing of CEO John Matze -- raises the potential for further political polarization owing to the growing digital divide.
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These apps are gaining traction by promising not to censor their users for behavior that might otherwise result in strict consequences from their rivals. MeWe has insisted that while it will monitor content, it will be "counter to the premise of social media to censor these conversations for political reasons.” And in Parler's November 7 "community guidelines," the company said it won't decide what content must be "removed or filtered, or whose account will be removed, on the basis of the opinion expressed within the content."
“People deserve better," Parler said in a statement shortly after Facebook and Twitter censored Trump's tweets. "They don’t need to be coddled, assigned a ‘safe space’ where they are told what they are permitted to think." On Twitter, Gab invited Parler users, including its CEO to use the site while Parler waited to get back online. On January 9, 2021, the site tweeted that it was gaining over 10,000 users an hour and had received "12m visits in past 12 hours". Business Insider reports Gab's user base has grown considerably since it first went live less than five years ago.
Trump has arguably been one of the most social-media-savvy leaders of our time, often using it to his advantage as he bypassed traditional communication channels. The former POTUS enjoyed a following of nearly 90 million on Twitter and 33 million on Facebook. In fact, Twitter's stock tumbled over 6% after it moved to permanently suspend the former US President and sparked concern among shareholders over the future regulation of social networks.
In an act of defiance against big tech censorship, conservatives on Facebook also launched a coordinated campaign to persuade its users to leave the platform for independent alternatives. USA Today reported in November how a public group promoting a "mass exit" off of Facebook had garnered nearly 500,000 people who said they're "going" to or "interested" in the event. "The point of this movement is to get off of these censored social media pages," the group's organizer shared at the time. "I encourage everyone to go on any social media site that will not censor you. No more 'fact-checkers' or people deleting or putting us in time out."
That said, alongside the alt-tech social media platforms, a number of websites are offering an alternative to YouTube -- furnishing the ability to post and share videos, as well as to stream live to an audience. These video-sharing sites have also promised lax moderation. BitChute and Rumble are among the most popular alternatives to YouTube and are gaining considerable traction among Trump supporters and right-wingers in general.
Also, a number of notable politicians and media figures have created their accounts on these new platforms. Republican South Dakota Gov Kristi Noem recently announced that she had joined MeWe. Meanwhile, Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo said after the election that she was leaving Twitter for Parler because the former had "abused power."
On February 6, senior Trump adviser Jason Miller said that the former President was considering whether to create his own social media platform. “I would expect that we will see the president reemerge on social media,” Miller told Breitbart News on SiriusXM 125. “Whether that’s joining an existing platform or creating his new platform, there are a number of different options and a number of different meetings that they’ve been having on that front. Nothing is imminent on that.”
Miller said, "all options are on the table" when pressed further about Trump's social media plans. “A number of things are being discussed. So stay tuned there because you know he’s going to be back on social media. We’re just kind of figuring out which avenue makes the most sense,” he added.
Trump was permanently suspended from Twitter and Facebook following the violent riots that took place at the US Capitol on January 6. He was also banned from other major platforms such as YouTube, Snapchat and Instagram, which is owned by Facebook.
The scrutiny on Trump's social media posts was evident throughout his presidency and ramped up after the November 3 election, when the former president made repeated calls to review the integrity of election results in several battleground states. After the January 6 incident, social media companies justified their censorship of Trump as an effort to guard against potential violence claiming he had violated their community guidelines by "inciting an insurrection" that led to the Capitol breach.
Last week, Trump was acquitted of the same charge by the Senate -- after the House of Representatives impeached him for a historic second time. The former President's legal defense argued that the Senate trial was unconstitutional and that their client was well within his First Amendment rights when he made a speech on January 6.
Trump addressed a crowd of his supporters in Washington as Congress convened to certify President Joe Biden's electoral college victory. During his speech, Trump reiterated claims about voter fraud and expressed his disappointment with some lawmakers. He specifically called on his supporters to “peacefully and patriotically” make their voices heard at the US Capitol as they protested the 2020 election results.
According to a timeline compiled by The Epoch Times, the breach at the Capitol building began long before Trump had concluded his speech at the rally, where he continued to call for peace and respect towards law enforcement. Following the riots, Trump condemned the “violence, lawlessness, and mayhem,” saying that those who “infiltrated the Capitol have defiled the seat of American democracy.”
While it is unclear if mainstream social media giants will let Trump back into the fold, the former President appears confident that his movement "has only just begun."
In a statement just moments after his acquittal, Trump reduced his Senate impeachment trial to "yet another phase of the greatest witch hunt in the history of our country." He also promised more news for his supporters in the coming months. "Our historic, patriotic and beautiful movement to Make America Great Again has only just begun," he added.
How will this new 'alt-tech' haven fare in the coming days, is only left to be seen.