Two of Donald Trump’s biggest would-be competitors in social media said they have spoken with the former president ahead of the launch of his Truth Social platform.
Speaking at the Pivot MIA conference in Miami Beach Wednesday, the chief executive officers of Parler and Gettr said they had both kept up a relationship with Trump and that they thought that there was enough room in the market for all three platforms.
Jason Miller, the former Trump adviser who now runs Gettr, said he would be meeting with the president later Wednesday and that he wasn’t worried about competition from his former boss.
“I’m actually looking forward to it,” Miller said. “I’m going to see the president this afternoon. I’ll make the pitch again to say @realDonaldTrump is all reserved and ready for you.”
He said he would encourage Trump to be on multiple platforms.
Parler CEO George Farmer generally agreed about the size of the market.
“Jason probably has talked to him as much as I have talked to him,” Farmer said. “We’ve had meetings with the Trump Organization.”
Both companies pitch themselves as forums for free speech, and are popular with Trump supporters who say their views are no longer welcome on traditional platforms. Parler in particular gained a reputation for far-right hate speech, and has been subject to scrutiny related to the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack. Gettr, which emerged after the attack, similarly pitches itself as an alternative to traditional social-media companies.
Miller said that the announcement of Truth Social actually coincided with a bump in new signups on his platform. He said conservatives stepped off social media when Trump was removed from Twitter, according to his research, and said they have started to come back.
He said waves of signups generally coincide with Trump announcements or moves from traditional platforms to remove people.
Parler’s Farmer said the company was also expanding into areas where Trump wouldn’t be a direct competitor, including what he calls “crypto social,” including non-fungible tokens.
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