US Politicians Saying "Ban TikTok" While Using TikTok... "Can't Give Up on Young Generation"

Despite the U.S. government’s declaration to ban the Chinese video platform TikTok for security reasons, it has been revealed that top government officials are still actively using TikTok. On the 6th (local time), the Associated Press reported, “Despite the U.S. government’s ban efforts, elected high-ranking officials widely use TikTok.” This includes U.S. President Joe Biden and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.

President Biden is conducting his presidential campaign through TikTok, and Governor Shapiro is actively using the platform not only on his personal account but also on the official governor’s account. The posts include official work-related content such as state government budgets as well as various other content like pop star Beyonc?’s songs. Michigan also banned TikTok use on state government devices in March last year, but Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer continues to post videos of her pets on her account, which has 245,000 followers.

The AP analyzed the reason politicians continue to use TikTok despite the ban efforts, stating, “The number of TikTok users in the U.S. is 170 million, most of whom are young people,” and “TikTok is the most effective channel to reach young voters, so they cannot give it up.”

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In U.S. politics, there have been considerations to completely ban TikTok in the U.S. due to concerns over the Chinese government’s access to information and surveillance of TikTok users. This is because of suspicions that the Chinese government uses TikTok as a tool to influence public opinion in Western countries.

At the end of 2022, the U.S. Congress included a provision banning TikTok use on government devices in the 2023 fiscal year budget bill (October 2022 to September 2023). Then, in March last year, when TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew appeared at a House hearing, lawmakers from both parties aggressively questioned the links between TikTok and China.

On the 13th (local time), the House passed a ban bill allowing TikTok to be removed from U.S. app stores due to security concerns. If this bill is enacted, ByteDance, TikTok’s operator, must sell TikTok’s U.S. business rights within six months, and if the sale fails, Google, Apple, and others will be prohibited from offering TikTok on their app stores. However, support in the Senate is divided, making the actual legislation uncertain. U.S. media outlets view a TikTok sale within six months as practically impossible.

Meanwhile, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a prominent progressive Democrat, criticized, “President Biden and bipartisan lawmakers are putting the cart before the horse,” adding, “For a major decision like banning TikTok, the public needs to understand why it is justified, but politicians are hastily trying to take TikTok away from Americans.”

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