Parler Users Are Gathering on Facebook to Complain About Parler
By: Sarah Emerson
Tags: Tech, Parler, Social Media, Platform, Facebook

Parler Users Are Gathering on Facebook to Complain About Parler

‘Seeming more like social solitude than social networking so far’

Last month, supporters of President Donald Trump announced their exodus from Facebook to “free speech” platforms such as Parler and MeWe after Facebook banned a series of groups for promoting election fraud conspiracy theories. Within a week, Parler became the most downloaded app on Apple and Android devices, and its user base doubled to more than 10 million members, the company said.

But cutting the Facebook cord appears easier said than done, and fledgling Parler users are gathering in Facebook groups dedicated to the act of abandoning Facebook. There, users are complaining about Parler’s confusing interface and the loneliness of a platform that none of their friends and family use.

Thousands of supposed Parler converts have joined groups like “Parler Invite Group” and “Who is moving to Parler,” OneZero found. These were created as spaces for people to share their Parler usernames, find new acquaintances, and bemoan the moderation of far-right content on Facebook. (Some of the groups appeared before the November banning of “Stop the Steal” groups, reflecting how Parler has been courting conservatives for years.)

“I’ve talked to so many that can’t even figure out how to get on it,” another member posted. “They’re still on FB thinking they’re on Parler.”

“My Parlers appear but never get responses. Seeming more like social solitude than social networking so far,” one person wrote in the “Parler Invite Group,” which is private and counts nearly 8,000 members.

“I’ve talked to so many that can’t even figure out how to get on it,” another member posted. “They’re still on FB thinking they’re on Parler.”

“Can anybody help with this exasperating problem I’m having?! I can’t join the website at all because of the captcha loop at the beginning,” someone else wrote in the “Who is moving to Parler” group. The group is public and has nearly 5,000 members.”

It’s unclear whether Parler can sustain the explosive growth it saw in early November. Even its most visible champions, far-right commentators such as Dan Bongino and Mark Levin, can’t seem to forego Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, where millions of their followers remain, the Washington Post reported. Parler’s monthly views are still a mere fraction of Facebook’s, the Post noted, and it’s unclear where the site would be without a vocal minority of influencers urging their audience to join the platform.

Parler did not immediately respond to OneZero’s request for comment.

On Facebook, some new Parler users are expressing concern about Parler’s verification system, which requires users to submit scans of their government-issued ID and a selfie to become verified and be able to send private direct messages.

“I’m tired of Facebook and can’t believe Parler can’t do better.”

“You have to be a verified user before you can send a direct message to a friend,” one Facebook group member wrote. “Getting verified requires you [to] send them a copy of your ID. Not comfortable with them having my ID and thinking about deleting account.”

“I’ll not be sending my ID to them,” another member replied. “I joined a few weeks ago and it’s not user friendly at all. I’m tired of Facebook and can’t believe Parler can’t do better.”

“I want a Parler account but I am done signing up with apps that require my cell phone number,” a user wrote in one of these Facebook groups, referring to Parler’s two-step verification process. (On Twitter, Parler has addressed similar concerns, tweeting, “The phone number is for your protection.”)

In an effort to assuage this person’s privacy fears, one user vouched for the platform’s credibility by mentioning Bongino, the popular conservative commentator who acquired an ownership stake in Parler this year. Bongino is mentioned in many of these groups’ discussions, and seems to be one of the company’s main evangelists. “Dan Bongino is owner of Parler. I certainly find him honorable unlike Zuckerberg and Dorsey,” that user replied.

“I trust Bongino,” echoed another person.

Still, other new users seem perplexed by Parler’s onboarding process, which entails a CAPTCHA test — a standard bot detection tool that many users apparently found suspicious. Others find the site’s design to be confounding since it looks and functions so differently than Facebook. Parler lacks groups and pages, for instance, and its search functionality is limited to usernames and hashtags. Some Facebook group members seemingly confused the act of joining the Facebook group for signing up to Parler.

“I think some are confusing acceptance into THIS GROUP as having actually joined Parler. Not the case,” the admin of a pro-Parler Facebook group wrote.

Parler’s most obvious appeal is its willingness to tolerate content prohibited by Facebook’s guidelines. The platform is currently rife with election conspiracy theories, QAnon propaganda, and extremist rhetoric on the platform that Parler has made little visible effort to moderate despite its own terms of use. But is unfettered speech a worthwhile tradeoff for community, audience, and familiarity?

According to one Facebook group member: “What’s the point of just seeing posts from conservative newsgroups, but not my friends or family? I’m just not sure about staying with it.”