According to a new study published by Taiwan’s Information Environment Research Center (IORG), those who use the short-video app Douyin, the Chinese-language version of TikTok, are more inclined to support the communist Chinese government. In the poll, 18.2% of respondents identified as Chinese-speaking TikTok users, with an average of 4.4 days per week spent on the app. This group of respondents was more inclined, by up to ten percentage points or more, to agree with China’s political positions while sceptical of US actions.
The majority of Chinese-speaking TikTok users believed that Taiwan’s government’s tighter connections with the US were “provoking China” and would lead to a confrontation across the Taiwan Strait. Furthermore, respondents stated that Taiwan’s economic development was inextricably related to the island nation’s ratification of different trade agreements with Beijing. According to the Beijing-based analytics firm QuestMobile, TikTok’s Chinese language cousin Douyin has over 750 million monthly active users as of May. Because Taiwan is at the forefront of China’s information war, the rising usage of Douyin is viewed as a national security risk.
TikTok was blocked on government devices due to cybersecurity concerns
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) warned last year that TikTok and Douyin threatened national security. Following that, TikTok was blocked on government devices due to cybersecurity concerns. Since the two parties divided after the civil war in 1949, they have been at odds indefinitely. Taiwan is considered part of China, although the island nation and its people have never accepted Beijing’s sovereignty. China, led by President Xi Jinping, has made it clear that it intends to seize control of Taiwan, using force if necessary. Xi stated during the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) meeting last year that the Taiwan issue was solely for the Chinese people.
“The resolution of the Taiwan issue is a matter for the Chinese people themselves, to be decided by the Chinese people,” said Xi. “We will continue to strive for peaceful reunification with the greatest sincerity and the utmost effort. But, we will never promise to renounce the use of force. And we reserve the option of taking all measures necessary.” Over the last 12-15 months, Beijing has performed war simulations near the island, fired indiscriminate missiles, and proclaimed a no-fly zone several times in an attempt to simulate how it would appear to cut Taiwan off in the event of a conflict.