The social media platform marketed as a supposedly conservative alternative to other sites, Parler, is being acquired by Kanye West.
Ye was “making a groundbreaking move,” according to Parlement Technologies CEO George Farmer, in a press statement.
“Parlement will be honored to help him achieve his goals,” Farmer, who is married to Candace Owens, said.
A Ye statement with similarly Fox News-style language is also included in the same press announcement.
“In a world where conservative opinions are considered to be controversial we have to make sure we have the right to freely express ourselves,” Ye said.
While speaking with NewsNation’s Chris Cuomo on Monday, he discussed the acquisition—as well as his antisemitic remarks—saying, “The CEO is just really incredible.”
“Why would I remain in a place where I’m just tolerated?” he asked the ex-CNN host, referring to Twitter and Instagram. “Why not go to a place where I’m celebrated? That’s actually something Kid Rock just gave me a text about.”
The platform became a much-discussed aspect of the larger Capitol riot investigation, with a previously published USA Today analysis showing the extent of Trump’s real-time impact on the platform in the moments preceding the attack. Parler has been criticized as “a haven for far-right extremism of all stripes,” as the Southern Poverty Law Center noted in January.
When it was first introduced in 2018, Parler swiftly established itself as the far-right personalities’ preferred social media platform. According to an Anti-Defamation League assessment from the time, the Proud Boys hate group and Islamophobic conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer both had large followings on the platform by November 2020.