The first reviews of the recently launched, self-branded “conservative dating app,” The Right Stuff are in. And things aren’t looking so good for the Peter Thiel-funded company. Of the 197 reviews currently posted in the iOS store, nearly 60 give the app a one-star rating.
Some common reviewer complaints include that the app lacks women, that the invite-only system makes it impossible to join, and that responding to a profile prompt around January 6 resulted in contact from law enforcement.
“App inquires about January 6th… I stated that I was present because I am a patriot… “I get a call from an FBI agent the SAME DAY????,” says one reviewer going by the handle “Big Chungus.” Another user claims that after creating a Right Stuff profile, police officers arrived at their home, accusing them of being “involved in domestic terrorism.”
One user complains that “all the women on here have been replaced with doughy middle-aged white guys.” A problem that the company appeared to want to avoid in its advertising by emphasizing a 100% genuine and authentic “group of conservative young women.”
To be fair, many of these app store reviews are clearly trolls, and there is no evidence that the FBI or any other law enforcement agency has contacted Right Stuff users. Furthermore, many of the complaints about the alleged lack of women are cloaked in homophobia.
But it’s true that the app does ask users to respond to an open-ended prompt about January 6 you know, to spice up the profile. Gizmodo confirmed that the question appears during the profile creation phase of the account setup process. And it’s not difficult to imagine people present on the day of the Capitol riot entering self-incriminating data into that blank white box.
Parler, a more prominent right-wing social media platform, did in fact send evidence and user information to the FBI in the lead-up to the Jan. 6 Capitol attack (though the FBI apparently didn’t heed those warnings). So there is a precedent for this type of thing.
However, in response to Gizmodo’s inquiries about the app and the posted reviews, the FBI’s National Press Office simply stated, “We have no comment to provide in response to your inquiry.” The agency also directed Gizmodo to the website of the District of Columbia District Attorney’s Office, where there is a webpage documenting the ongoing investigation and arrests related to the Jan. 6, 2021 insurgency.
A Right Stuff spokesperson said, “The claims that users were contacted by the FBI or that we forwarded information to law enforcement are completely false,” in an email to Gizmodo.
“Our prompts are used as fun conversation starters where users can share their personality through their opinions,” the company wrote when asked why the app specifically prompts users to talk about January 6.
Finally, addressing some of the more earnest-seeming, common complaints, Right Stuff’s spokesperson told Gizmodo: “The app is invite-only to ensure a high quality community of conservative users.”
