Hot off the Press: TikTok To Be Banned in the US?

March 13, 2024
ALEXANDER

TikTok to Be Banned in the US?

Hot off the press! In a sweeping vote today (352-65), the House approved a bill supported by both political groups that would force TikTok to sell the app or face a ban in the United States. Goodbye, gays twerking and showing off their muscles! The real issue is the parent company of TikTok, ByteDance, being a China-owned company. This is something the company has stated would never happen.

The real main issue is security. A classified briefing by national security and intelligence agencies highlights that the app poses a threat to user privacy and has been used to interfere with elections and journalism related to elections. Furthermore, last week, the FBI Director reported to the Senate that the Chinese government could potentially use the app to control the software on devices across the U.S. According to him, this could happen without outward signs of it happening.

The bill, officially titled "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act," gives ByteDance six months to sell TikTok or face the U.S. ban. The ban calls for any app under the ByteDance umbrella. The bill still has to go to the Senate, with many of the lawmakers saying hearings would need to be held before such a vote can be placed, so a potential ban is not immediately on the horizon. The bill would also provide a future safe place for the president to use for any other foreign apps.

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TikTok is firing back saying that the bill violates the free speech rights of American citizens, claiming that TikTok gives users a place to share ideas and express themselves. TikTok released the following statement:

"The government is attempting to strip 170 million Americans of their Constitutional right to free expression. This will damage millions of businesses, deny artists an audience, and destroy the livelihoods of countless creators across the country."

Organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union have echoed the sentiment that the restriction is censorship and violates free expression. Illinois Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi, the ranking Democrat on the House Select Committee on China who helped write the bill, told NPR "There's no First Amendment right to espionage, there's no First Amendment right to harm our national security."

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TikTok has maintained that they have made efforts and spent funds to build a firewall to protect data privacy and keep user data strictly in the U.S. Krishnamoorthi said their research finds this not to be true. ByteDance CEO Shou Zi Chew has been in D.C. meeting with lawmakers to discuss the bill and gather supporters.

Biden has said he will sign the bill if it comes to him. Trump, who previously supported a TikTok ban during his presidency, says he knows opposes a ban because it would make Facebook more popular.