Parler returns to App Store, says it will censor objectionable content on iOS

Credit: Apple

Parler has now returned to the iOS App Store after "months of productive dialogue with Apple," with a solution including censoring content that violates Apple's guidelines on the mobile app.

The social media site's interim CEO, Mark Meckler, said that the company has worked to "address Apple's concerns without compromising our core mission." Essentially, the platform will censor content on iOS to keep Apple happy.

"Anything allowed on the Parler network but not in the iOS app will remain accessible through our web-based and Android versions. This is a win-win for Parler, its users, and free speech," Meckler said in a statement to The Verge.

Parler positions itself as a free speech-focused alternative to Twitter or other social media sites. The platform was banned by Apple, Google, and other web platforms after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol because it didn't do enough to curb violent content that encouraged the riot.

Apple approved Parler's return to the App Store in April. That came after a rejection from Apple in March, when the Cupertino tech giant said that Parler still had objectionable content on its platform — including Nazi imagery and white supremacist symbols.

According to Parler, the iOS app now has an automated system that can automatically detect violent or inciting content while still preserving user privacy. The company says that kind of content "has always violated Parler's guidelines."

As of writing, Parler remains absent from the Google Play Store. Unlike on iOS, however, users can still sideload the app on Android devices.

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