Kanye West said to have inked a deal to acquire right-wing social-media platform Parler

Kanye West has agreed to acquire the right-wing social-media platform Parler, according to a statement by parent company Parlement Technologies on Monday. “In a world where conservative opinions are considered to be controversial we have to make sure we have the right to freely express ourselves,” West, who now goes by the name Ye, said in the statement. The deal “will change the world and change the way the world thinks about free speech,” said Parler CEO George Farmer. “Ye is making a groundbreaking move into the free speech media space and will never have to fear being removed from social media again.” No financial terms were disclosed, although the deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. The news comes after Ye’s Twitter and Instagram META, +5.48% accounts were restricted after he made antisemitic remarks. The rapper and clothing entrepreneur had returned to Twitter TWTR, +0.59% after a roughly two-year hiatus. Parler was founded in Nashville, Tenn., in 2018 and calls itself a “free speech” social network but is best known for having attracted supporters of Donald Trump, the former U.S. president. It now competes with Trump’s Truth Social platform.