TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has made a bold declaration that the popular short video app will continue to operate in the US, despite President Joe Biden signing a bill that aims to ban it. Chew expressed confidence that the company will prevail in its legal challenge, stating, “The facts and the Constitution are on our side.”
The bill gives China-based ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, 270 days to divest its US assets or face a ban. The deadline is set for January 19, just a day before Biden’s term expires. However, the president can extend the deadline by three months if he determines ByteDance is making progress.
Biden’s administration claims the bill is about protecting national security, while Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, has reversed his previous stance and now accuses Biden of pushing for a ban. Trump urges voters to take notice, saying, “Make no mistake – this is a ban on TikTok.”
However, many experts question whether any potential buyer has the financial resources to acquire TikTok and whether China and US government agencies would approve a sale. The American Civil Liberties Union warns that banning or requiring divestiture of TikTok would set an “alarming global precedent” for excessive government control over social media platforms.
The four-year battle over TikTok is a significant front in the war over the internet and technology between Washington and Beijing. Last week, Apple revealed that China ordered it to remove Meta Platforms’ WhatsApp and Threads from its App Store in China over national security concerns.
TikTok plans to challenge the bill on First Amendment grounds, and users are expected to take legal action. A US judge in Montana blocked a state ban on TikTok in November, citing free-speech grounds.
The new legislation may give the Biden administration a stronger legal footing to ban TikTok if ByteDance fails to divest the app. This could have far-reaching consequences, as app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet’s Google, and others may be unable to offer TikTok or provide web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications or TikTok’s website.
Senator Laphonza Butler urged the White House to consider the fate of 8,000 US employees of TikTok, many of whom are in New York or California. “We must acknowledge the impact on TikTok workers and our local economies as we determine a path forward,” Butler wrote to Biden.
The bill also gives the White House new tools to ban or force the sale of other foreign-owned apps deemed security threats. Democratic Senator Ron Wyden expressed concern that the bill “provides broad authority that could be abused by a future administration to violate Americans’ First Amendment rights.”
Biden’s re-election campaign plans to continue using TikTok, while Trump’s campaign has not joined the platform. The battle over TikTok highlights the complex intersection of politics, technology, and free speech.
