US lawmakers recently introduced legislation requiring Chinese tech giant ByteDance to divest from the widely used video-sharing app TikTok within six months or face a ban.
New bill forces ByteDance to divest from TikTok
The White House described the new bipartisan bill as a “welcoming move,” citing concerns that Chinese authorities could easily access data from the app.
On Thursday, the US House Committee on Energy and Commerce is scheduled to hold a legislative hearing and vote on the “Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act”. The bill was introduced on Tuesday by up to 19 bipartisan lawmakers.
Representative Mike Gallagher, the Republican chairman of the House Select China Committee, and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, the panel’s top Democrat, co-authored the legislation. They are both members of the Intelligence Committee and have recently visited Taiwan and the larger Indo-Pacific region.
It views ByteDance and TikTok as applications controlled by a foreign adversary
It views ByteDance and TikTok as applications controlled by a foreign adversary, urging the parent company to sell the video app within 165 days or face a ban.
The bill would create a framework for the president, with the assistance of the FBI and other intelligence agencies, to classify certain social media platforms controlled by foreign adversaries such as Russia and China as posing national security threats to the United States.
If an app was declared a risk, it would be removed from online app stores and web hosting providers until it ended relationships with foreign competitors’ businesses. That means TikTok, which FBI Director Christopher Wray claims poses a threat to national security, may face a ban unless ByteDance acts quickly to divest it.
Gallagher told reporters on Wednesday that “TikTok could live on and people could do whatever they want on it provided there is that separation.”
He also urged US ByteDance investors to support the sale, emphasizing that “it is not a ban – think of this as a surgery designed to remove the tumor and thereby save the patient in the process.”
TikTok’s spokesperson slammed the bill, calling it an “outright ban of TikTok
It is the most recent attempt to outlaw TikTok, following last year’s measures, which failed to gain traction and were deemed unconstitutional.
TikTok’s spokesperson slammed the bill, calling it an “outright ban of TikTok, no matter how much the authors try to disguise it.”
“This legislation will trample the First Amendment rights of 170 million Americans and deprive 5 million small businesses of a platform they rely on to grow and create jobs,” the statement read.
The app is also prohibited on government devices
Meanwhile, the White House has expressed strong support for the bipartisan proposal, though it is still considering some amendments.
According to a spokesperson for the National Security Council, the Biden administration has worked with legislators from both parties to develop a long-term legal solution to address the risks of technology services that operate across the United States and jeopardize Americans’ sensitive data and overall national security.
“This bill is an important and welcome step to address that threat,” the NSC stated.
TikTok is widely used in the United States and is especially popular among young people.
Last year, senators proposed legislation to ban the app, but the effort was stymied by corporate lobbying.
Former President Donald Trump attempted to restrict TikTok in 2020, but his efforts were unsuccessful.
The app is also prohibited on government devices. However, President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign joined TikTok last month, sparking outrage from Republicans and critics.