from typing import List


def filter_releases_by_channel(releases: List[dict], channel: str):
    """
    Filter releases by channel (stable, beta, or alpha).

    :param releases: a list of releases
    :param channel: a software channel (
    :return: a filtered list of releases

    """
    if channel not in ["stable", "beta", "alpha"]:
        raise ValueError("Channel must be one of 'stable', 'beta', 'alpha'")

    if channel == "stable":
        return [r for r in releases if "alpha" not in r["name"] and "beta" not in r["name"]]

    elif channel == "beta":
        return [r for r in releases if "alpha" not in r["name"]]

    return list(releases)