this morning, The U.S. House of Representatives has voted to essentially ban TikTok unless Chinese-owned ByteDance divests the app entirely. If passed in the Senate, TikTok would have about six months to break free from its Chinese owners.
In speeches ahead of the vote on HR 7521, the Apps Protecting Americans from Control by Foreign Adversaries Act, members of Congress highlighted the app’s many security concerns, including the possibility of employees of the Chinese company accessing U.S. user data sex, and the spread of pro-China propaganda.
Rep. Sarah Jacobs, who opposed the bill, said in a statement after the vote: “As a member of the House Armed Services Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I am acutely aware of the threat that Chinese information operations may pose, Especially as they relate to our elections…Banning TikTok does not protect Americans from targeted misinformation or the misuse of personal data, which is often sold and shared by U.S. data brokers.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said she was concerned the bill could be used to force the sale of other social media platforms, specifically mentioning X, which is now owned by Elon Musk ) all.
Last week, many TikTok users opened the app and saw a notification warning them that Congress was planning to ban the service and urging them to call their representatives. Apparently, congressional offices were flooded with calls from concerned users. The move may have backfired, demonstrating to several members of Congress the power of the app to shape user behavior. In a statement supporting the bill, Republican Representative Ashley Hinson asked, “What if TikTok sends an alert saying the election has been canceled?”
But Rep. Sidney Kamlager-Dorff pointed out that China’s influence operations are not limited to TikTok. In November 2023, Meta announced that it had removed large-scale Chinese influence operations targeting the United States from its platform. Some smaller networks are also targeting users in India and Tibet.
Prominent TikTok creators have challenged the bill. “It’s unclear whether this bill will actually protect Americans, but I don’t think that’s really the goal,” said Charlotte Palermino, CEO and co-founder of skin-care brand Dieux , Dieux is a popular creator on TikTok and other platforms. “I think it’s silly, but I think it’s a good summary of American politics today, that we have people who are not tech savvy trying to police it.”
Palermino sees TikTok Shop as a valuable tool for small businesses and said shutting down TikTok will have a short-term negative impact on Dieux. “It’s going to be challenging to lose that,” she said. While she believes Dieux can pivot to focus on other platforms, she doubts a TikTok ban could severely impact other independent and emerging brands in the U.S. to a large extent. “It’s going to hurt their business.”
Sigourney Norman, an artist and former attorney who uses TikTok to discuss politics, race, gender and sexual orientation, said she doesn’t believe lawmakers’ argument that the bill would help protect U.S. users’ data.