China-owned video-sharing platform TikTok is on the verge of a nationwide ban in the United States over security concerns.
The proposed ban is being reviewed by Congress, but voices have started to rise against the restriction. TikTok currently has 150 million monthly active users in the US.
Also Read: TikTok Has Troves of Indian User Data 3 Years After Ban
A group of lawmakers, including Jamaal Bowman, Mark Pocan, and Robert Garcia, along with TikTok’s creators, held a press conference in Washington DC to advocate for the implementation of comprehensive privacy regulations that would apply to all major social media platforms.
As expected, Reps. Mark Pocan and Robert Garcia join Jamaal Bowman & TikTok creator at a press conference opposing banning TikTok: pic.twitter.com/q2UUkQCGQX
— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) March 22, 2023
“Banning TikTok isn’t the answer. Making sure Americans’ data is safe is,” said Pocan.
A “xenophobic witch hunt” is motivating some in Congress to seek a TikTok ban, argued Pocan.
‘Ban is not a practical solution’
New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu is also against the ban and believes it does not seem like a “practical” solution to national security concerns about the application.
Sometimes government bans are necessary, but if “the government’s now going to tell 100 million people they have to delete TikTok off their devices, that doesn’t seem practical,” he explained.
“The app should not be banned in the United States,” added Sununu. “Americans should have the choice whether to download TikTok or not.”
Despite this pro-choice stance, the Governor suggested users should be fully aware of the dangers of having TikTok installed on their devices.
“Our job is to make sure folks know that if they’re choosing to use TikTok, they’re choosing to hand their personal information over to the Chinese government, effectively. So we need to make it very clear about what is being transferred, what information is being made available.”
TikTok, of course, has repeatedly refuted allegations of sharing American user data with China’s government, saying it “is not an agent of China or any other country.”
5m US businesses affected
Banning TikTok will affect around five million business in the United States, argued Rep. Jamaal Bowman.
“More than 150 million Americans, including 5 million U.S. businesses, use TikTok to inspire creativity, bring joy, and support their livelihoods,” said Bowman, who has 160,000 followers on TikTok himself.
Robert Garcia, who represents California’s Democratic Party, believes “there has got to be a way of ensuring that we don’t disrupt a huge opportunity for the country.”
Without a doubt. It’s given us a platform to reach millions, even as normal people. For me, it’s allowed my LGBTQ advocacy to grow and support so many in the queer community. As a soldier and security guru at heart, the concerns are real and need to be addressed (but with a…
— brian femminella (@brianfemminella) March 23, 2023
Although a significant number of voters support a ban on TikTok, according to American statistician Nate Silver, this does not necessarily dictate the political reaction to such a ban.
“That isn’t necessarily dispositive to what the political reaction would be. But I’d trust it before some hand-waving notion that OMG GEN Z WILL BE SO MAD AND WE HAVE TO APPEAL TO THE YOUTHS,” tweeted Silver.
A prolific American user of TikTok (LukeDavidJohnson) urges skepticism about the stated motives for why the US Security State and both parties are so eager to ban the app, one that 100 million Americans voluntarily choose to use. Even if you support the ban, it's worth hearing. pic.twitter.com/UY95xoBXDF
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) March 19, 2023
The tech editor at Yahoo Finance, Daniel Howley, has previously stated TikTok’s data-collection policies are similar to other social-media apps like Twitter, Facebook, and Snapchat.
“TikTok is collecting similar data to Meta, Twitter, Snap. We frequently talk about these kinds of groups of bots that are found, spreading propaganda — that can be an issue on TikTok, but it already is on Meta,” said Howley.
Tech journalist Matthew Keys, meanwhile, believes that what TikTok is accused of is “Google and Facebook’s job.”
“Bipartisan lawmakers in Congress are ready for a ban on TikTok because they claim it can be used to collect data and spy on Americans, which we all know is Google and Facebook’s job,” tweeted Keys.
and then