ByteDance plans to fight the decision in court. TikTok CEO Shou Chew opposes the ban, stating it would negatively impact small businesses and creators.
Concerns over privacy and security, as well as allegations of manipulation and intimidation by the Chinese government have led to the potential ban.
India banned TikTok in 2020 with about 200 million users, citing privacy concerns and sovereignty and security.
President Joe Biden has signed a bill that could lead to the ban of social media app TikTok in the US.
The legislation gives ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, up to a year to sell its stake in the app or face a nationwide ban.
President Joe Biden has signed a bill that could lead to the ban of popular social media app TikTok in the United States. The legislation, which was passed by Congress, gives ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, up to a year to sell its stake in the app or face a nationwide ban. This is the first time such a law has been passed against a social media platform in the U.S.
The potential TikTok ban has been under consideration by members of the federal government for almost four years, with bipartisan bills being proposed since December 2022. The decision to ban TikTok comes amid concerns over privacy and security, as well as allegations that the Chinese government manipulates information and intimidates critics through state-run media.
India banned TikTok in June 2020 following a military clash along the India-China border. At the time, TikTok had about 200 million users in India, making it the most popular app outside of China. The Indian government cited privacy concerns and sovereignty and security as reasons for the ban.
ByteDance has stated that it will fight the decision in court. TikTok CEO Shou Chew has also expressed his opposition to the ban, stating that it would negatively impact small businesses and creators who use the platform to reach their audiences.
It is important to note that this article does not draw conclusions or make calls to action. The purpose of this article is to provide a complete and factual account of the situation surrounding TikTok's potential ban in the United States.
President Joe Biden signed a bill that could lead to a TikTok ban, but the implementation of the ban is not immediate and includes a nine-month deadline for the company to sell to a U.S.-approved owner or face a ban.
TikTok CEO Shou Chew says the company will fight the decision in court.
The potential TikTok ban has been under consideration by members of the federal government for almost four years.
A bipartisan bill to ban TikTok in the U.S. was first proposed in December 2022, with versions being worked on since before March.
Accuracy
President Biden has signed a law that gives ByteDance up to a year to fully divest from TikTok, or face a nationwide ban.
The law is not expected to cause any immediate disruption to TikTok, as a forthcoming legal challenge and various hurdles to selling the app will likely cause months of delay.
ByteDance must sell its stake in TikTok in 12 months under the threat of being shut down.
President Biden has signed a law that gives ByteDance up to a year to fully divest from TikTok, or face a nationwide ban.
ByteDance must sell its stake in TikTok in 12 months under the threat of being shut down.
This is the first time the U.S. has passed a law that could trigger the ban of a social media platform.
Accuracy
If not sold within a year, the law would make it illegal for web-hosting services to support TikTok, and it would force Google and Apple to remove TikTok from app stores.
Deception
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Fallacies
(85%)
The author makes an appeal to authority when quoting Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell and Kate Ruane, but these quotes do not constitute fallacies on their own as they accurately represent the speakers' positions. However, the author also uses inflammatory rhetoric by describing TikTok as a 'trendsetter in the world of short-form video' and 'the most serious threat yet to [TikTok]'s future in the U.S.' This language is not based on facts and can be considered an attempt to manipulate readers' emotions, which is a fallacy known as emotional appeal or appeal to emotion. The score is 85 because of this fallacy.
The most serious threat yet to [TikTok]'s future in the U.S.
India banned TikTok and other Chinese apps in June 2020 following a military clash along the India-China border.
TikTok had about 200 million users in India, the most outside of China.
Accuracy
,
President Joe Biden signed a bill that could lead to a TikTok ban, but the implementation of the ban is not immediate and includes a nine-month deadline for the company to sell to a U.S.-approved owner or face a ban.
The Senate passed a bill that compels ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, to sell the app within about nine months or face a ban in the United States.
President Joe Biden signed the bill into law.
Chinese government has been accused of manipulating information, intimidating critics, and using state-run media to bolster its reputation abroad.
Some user data from American TikTok creators and businesses, including Social Security numbers, have been stored on Chinese servers.
TikTok's recommendation algorithms are part of China’s export-control list and China has said it will not approve their sale.
Accuracy
TikTok has argued that it has made good-faith efforts to comply with US law by spending $1.5 billion on data-security initiatives and partnering with Oracle to move American user data Stateside.
TikTok has denied accusations that it could be sharing American user data with the Chinese government or recommending Chinese government propaganda to American users.
Deception
(30%)
The article contains selective reporting and emotional manipulation. The author expresses his opinion that the process of selling or banning TikTok is chaotic and poorly executed, but he fails to acknowledge that this chaos may be a result of the government's own actions in rushing the legislation through without proper evidence or consideration for the logistical issues involved. The author also implies that TikTok is not uniquely bad compared to other social media platforms, but later in the article he refers to it as 'the beating heart of a social-media industrial complex that mines our data and uses them to manipulate our behavior.' This statement is an emotional manipulation intended to elicit a negative reaction from readers. Additionally, the author quotes Senator Mark Warner stating that 'they've not seen what Congress has seen,' implying that there are hidden revelations being withheld from the public, but he does not provide any evidence of this or explain what these revelations might be. This is an example of selective reporting as the author is only reporting details that support his position without providing a balanced view.
There are 194 days until the next election and some 270 days until the next president is sworn into office. It stands to reason that Biden’s qualified buyer might be different from one selected by Donald Trump...
Charlie Warzel is a staff writer at The Atlantic and the author of its newsletter Galaxy Brain, about technology, media, and big ideas.
The government's case against TikTok is vague... Broadly speaking, the concern from lawmakers ...is that the Chinese government can use TikTok, an extremely popular broadcast and consumption platform for millions of Americans, to quietly and algorithmically promote propaganda, potentially meddling in our nation’s politics.
Fallacies
(85%)
The author makes an appeal to authority by citing the U.S. State Department's concerns about China's influence and manipulation of information without providing any concrete evidence or examples from TikTok specifically. The author also uses inflammatory rhetoric by describing the potential sale or ban of TikTok as a 'disaster' and 'chaos', which is an emotional appeal that does not add to the logical argument.
]The government's case against TikTok is vague. Broadly speaking, the concern from lawmakers ... is that the Chinese government can use TikTok, an extremely popular broadcast and consumption platform for millions of Americans, to quietly and algorithmically promote propaganda, potentially meddling in our nation's politics.[
According to the U.S. State Department, the Chinese government is set on using its influence to 'reshape the global information environment' and has long manipulated information, intimidated critics, and used state-run media to try to bolster the Communist Party of China's reputation abroad.
Bias
(80%)
The author expresses a negative opinion towards the potential sale or ban of TikTok to a Chinese buyer due to national security concerns and privacy issues. However, they also acknowledge that the evidence against TikTok is vague and that some of it may be of dubious provenance. The author also questions the logistics and legality of forcing a sale or ban, pointing out potential complications such as recommendation algorithms being on China's export-control list and the lack of clear buyers for TikTok. While expressing skepticism towards TikTok, the author also criticizes the rushed and sloppy process by which the government is attempting to address its concerns.
Nobody knows what's going on. It's chaos!
Some of the evidence may also be of dubious provenance
