Democrats and Republicans don’t agree much these days, but they have joined forces to unveil bipartisan legislation that would ban TikTok in the US.
Representatives from both sides of the political divide in the House of Representatives and the Senate have spoken out against what they perceive as a threat to national security.
Those concerns were reflected in a bill introduced by Republican Senator Marco Rubio that would block “any social media companies in or under the influence” of China and other hostile foreign countries, including Russia.
would put Tick tock in line for an outright ban, a nuclear option attempted by former President Donald Trump on alleged ties to the Chinese government.
TikTok is owned by ByteDance, which is based in Beijing.
But being one of the most popular apps in the United States and in the world (more than 100 million and one billion users respectively), would politicians really be willing to force its removal from their citizens’ smartphones?
How would the US go about imposing a ban?
Based on the provision announced by the Hon. Ruby, President Joe Biden it could impose sanctions on TikTok and other social media companies to prevent business operations in the United States.
As 2022 winds down, the bill likely won’t be introduced to Congress until next year, with its prospects in the House of Representatives bolstered by Republican midterm gains in November.
If the House passes the bill, it would then head to the Democrat-controlled Senate.
But Dr Evan Lawrence, senior lecturer in international relations at the University of Central Lancashire, doubts the legislation will go that far.
“Technically you can [ban TikTok]but realistically it’s not all that useful,” he told Sky News.
“A lot of times, legislation like this is used as a negotiating tactic – it’s really not meant to really go anywhere, but instead puts it on the media and public radar, so they have a better negotiating position.”
The US government has been in talks with TikTok’s parent company for some time about the regulation, with a spokesman saying he was “confident” that it could “fully satisfy all reasonable US national security concerns”.
What are these “national security concerns”?
Since the end of the midterms, anti-TikTok rhetoric has revived, with FBI Director Chris Wray warning that TikTok’s US operations raise national security concerns.
Earlier this month, The state of Indiana has filed a lawsuit against TikTokclaiming to deceive its users about China’s access to their data.
And the governors of Texas, Maryland, South Dakota and South Carolina have ordered state agencies to ban TikTok on government-provided devices.
Dr Lawrence said federal device regulation “isn’t a bad thing” given concerns about foreign interference in US elections, “but whether you could do it for the public is another matter.”
Could an old idea of Trump’s make a comeback?
Towards the end of his presidency, Trump suggested that ByteDance sell its American assets to a US company like Microsoft.
While Mr. Biden withdrew his predecessor’s order, he has called for a government review of foreign-owned apps, which remains ongoing more than a year later.
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Trump: ‘I don’t mind’ if Microsoft buys TikTok
Thomas Walters, founder of global influencer agency Billion Dollar Boy, said Trump’s proposed sell-off was now “the most likely outcome”.
“If this bill gets real bilateral support then something is definitely going to happen,” he told Sky News.
“But an outright ban like they have in India is much more unlikely.
“There is now a real brand love for TikTok, it is extremely well used by younger consumers and is quite well established among marketers as well.”
What did TikTok say?
TikTok continued to dismiss the concerns, insisting that its US operation is independent of its parent company and that American users’ data is safe.
A spokesman described Rubio’s legislation as a “politically motivated ban that will do nothing to advance the national security of the United States.”
