![]() “TikTok is a weapon by the Chinese Communist Party to manipulate you,” said Rep. Data-privacy violations are one thing, but Chinese data-privacy violations are another. The committee did not overlook the fact that many of TikTok’s purported data practices are very similar to those of American social media companies’-a point Chew often brought up-but it made clear that if it took an aggressive stance toward such data surveillance now, this was because of the platform’s country of origin. will tackle potentially hostile foreign entities in the coming years. Beneath the probing, often-thoughtful questions about TikTok’s uniquely time-sucking algorithm and its effects on users, there was a clear message that this was meant to be a public statement about China, a demonstration of how the U.S. In essence, while some politicians brought nuanced and interesting questions, for the most part the TikTok hearing was a chance for China-hawk U.S. ![]() In a Dugout Trench in Iraq, I Experienced a Brutal Force Firsthand. It Isn’t Just You: Air Travel Is Getting Worse It Has Finally Become Clear What Elon Musk Wants Twitter to Be “A lot of your answers are a bit nebulous.” “You remind me a lot of Mark Zuckerberg, who I said reminded me of Fred Astaire: a good dancer with words,” said California Rep. “You are not trusted here,” California Rep. The suspicion and hostility were pronounced. Chew could only promise that both apps would be completely firewalled from each other once Project Texas was finished.Įvery other possible China angle was addressed, however: who wrote TikTok’s source code, does Chew “disagree” with the CCP when it says ByteDance should retain TikTok ownership, what kinds of compensation did he earn from TikTok and ByteDance, is TikTok meant to serve as a publisher of CCP propaganda, what did Chew think of a former employee’s claim that “everything is seen in China.” Chew was given room only for short responses before lawmakers would interrupt with yet another question the demand was for the CEO to answer committee queries with only a “yes” or “no,” instead of waffling or talking around details. Richard Hudson wanted to know if TikTok and Douyin were “connected,” and if Douyin could access U.S. If they were inclined to mention another ByteDance app, it was most often Douyin, China’s TikTok equivalent. While the interrogators often cited reporting from outlets like the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal, and utilized individual TikToks as visual cues, nobody seemed to provide new evidence that substantively added to already-extant public records.įor all the emphasis on ByteDance in particular, the committee didn’t seem too concerned about the corporation’s other U.S. “Like many companies, we rely on a global workforce,” Chew replied. Bob Latta asked about China’s laws coercing companies to adhere to strict CCP demands, and how that could affect the ways TikTok shares and promotes videos. “I find that preposterous!” Eshoo retorted. Chew claimed he’s “seen no evidence” China still holds this data. ![]() data China had already held in previous years will be moved to U.S.-exclusive storage. Anna Eshoo then asked how Chew could promise that U.S. Chew responded that his phone was full of messages offering well wishes and unsolicited advice from all over. Michael Burgess asked Chew whether the CCP’s opposition to a ByteDance sale of TikTok would prevent a U.S.-mandated divestiture, or whether ByteDance officials helped to “prepare” him for this hearing. Throughout the hearing, representatives from both parties pursued the question of not if the CCP has explicit influence over TikTok and its operations, but how much influence it has. Today, I questioned TikTok CEO Shou Chew about info it collects and the need for comprehensive privacy legislation that puts people back in control of their data. I’m very concerned about the scope & scale of the information #TikTok collects from its users & U.S. ![]()
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