The logo of the social network Parler (illustration).

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Jaap Arriens / Sipa USA / SIPA

Talking comes out of purgatory.

More than a month after being decommissioned by the web giants, the popular social network for supporters of Donald Trump and the far right has been partially available since Monday thanks to new partners.

It remains to be seen what approach the new team will take on moderation after the sacking of its boss John Matze.

All the services are far from being operational.

Only those who already had an account can login (new users should be accepted next week) and all old messages are gone.

It is not known whether this is a voluntary decision, to avoid having to moderate controversial content, while some users were mobilized on the social network before the assault on the Capitol.

It is also possible that the company was taken aback by the abrupt termination of the hosting contract by Amazon Web Services.

Small Californian host

Parler (pronounced like "parlor" in VO, phonetically [speaker]) has found refuge with the small Californian host SkySilk.

The latter explained “not to condone hatred” and “to disagree” with certain opinions conveyed on Speaking but wanting to “defend freedom of expression”.

https://twitter.com/SkySilkCloud/status/1361454330864263168

Parler now employs Epik as a domain name manager, a service that binds a numeric IP address to an address like parlier.com.

Epik is also used by Gab, the conservative Facebook clone.

Funded by the Mercer family

"Parler was created to provide a social network that protects freedom of expression while promoting respect for privacy and the exchange of ideas," said in a statement Mark Meckler, interim CEO of Parler and spokesperson for the Tea Party Patriots group.

It was named by Rebekah Mercer, the heiress to a wealthy and influential conservative family close to Steve Bannon, who had notably invested in Cambridge Analytica.

In early January, Parler claimed 15 million users, including Fox News stars Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson or Republican Governor of South Dakota Kristi Noem.

The main obstacle to its growth remains its blocking by Google and Apple of their app store, a decision taken for repeated violations of their charter on violent content.

The two companies could be brought to review their decision but had indicated that Parler had previously to put in place a real moderation policy.

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