U.S. TikTok ban could become reality as CEO testifies before Congress

Reflecting growing national security concerns over the user data TikTok collects, U.S. President Joe Biden is reportedly mulling over a decision to outright ban the popular video-sharing app – a decision that would easily impact millions of young people and the global music industry.

Despite the app’s immense popularity, particularly among young people, concerns raised from elected officials in the U.S. are nothing new. TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, has faced criticism across party lines for the data it collects on its millions of users as American lawmakers worry this sensitive information could fall into the hands of the Chinese government.

TikTok has repeatedly stated that the platform has never turned over data to China and that it would refuse to do so if asked. TikTok CEO Shou Chew reiterated this message during his testimony at the U.S. Congress today in front of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

In a TikTok video released ahead of his visit to Washington, Chew stated that over 150 million Americans are on the app. “That’s almost half of the U.S. coming to TikTok. To connect, to create, to share, to learn, or just to have some fun,” he said.

@tiktokOur CEO, Shou Chew, shares a special message on behalf of the entire TikTok team to thank our community of 150 million Americans ahead of his congressional hearing later this week.♬ original sound - TikTok

The Trump administration first formally targeted the platform in 2020 with an executive order prohibiting U.S. companies from doing business with ByteDance. Biden later revoked that order in June 2021 and the platform sought approval from the U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment to operate in the country. TikTok’s proposed plan, titled Project Texas, outlined how government-approved officials and third-party auditors would ensure China would not have access to Americans’ data.

The plan has not been approved and last week the Biden administration signaled that it wants ByteDance to sell the app or it will face a TikTok ban in the United States.

As The New York Times' Sapna Maheshwari put it: "The app has become a battleground in a technological Cold War between the two countries, with U.S. threats of a TikTok ban recalling how China has long blocked many American platforms."

Lawmakers have also raised concerns about dangerous content being exposed to children on the app. TikTok, like other popular social media platforms, has been criticised for platforming misinformation on subjects including school shootings and the coronavirus pandemic, as well as promoting far-right propaganda. In addition, several life-threatening trends have gone viral on the app, including pouring NyQuil on chicken wings, taking excessive amounts of medication and The Blackout Challenge – purposefully holding one’s breath to make themselves faint.

In Ireland, a string of recent TikTok videos that falsely accused migrants of heinous crimes have racked up millions of views, leading to anti-migrant violence.

“Big tech has increasingly become a destructive force in American society,” Republican congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers said before the hearing. “The energy and commerce committee has been at the forefront of asking big tech CEOs – from Facebook to Twitter to Google – to answer for their companies’ actions. These efforts will continue with TikTok.”

Despite these sentiments, others worry about the impact banning the popular video app would have on the music industry, both in the U.S. and globally. As Rolling Stone points out, the action of banning TikTok, where many artists gain their following, would make it harder for rising musicians to break into the music scene.

“It has democratized the business and made entrepreneurs more bullish about staying independent. A lot of the breakout success stories, the first breakout moment is usually coming from TikTok,” A&R executive Chris Anokute said. “It doesn’t stop with a viral moment, but it can be a great launching pad for a career, and I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I would hope if it were no longer around, we’d see somebody step up and take their market.”