TikTok Sues to Block Federal Ban

Social Media,

Social media giant TikTok filed a federal lawsuit this week challenging a new law that would ban the app or force its Chinese parent-company to sell the social media platform.

With an estimated one billion users worldwide and 150 million in the U.S., TikTok is considered by some to be the most popular social media platform in the world — especially among teens and young adults.

The company has struggled to protect private user data from entities in China, and the platform has faced criticism for letting its algorithm serve users what some call a steady “diet of darkness” online.

As U.S. Congressman Bruce Westerman wrote in March,

Although TikTok executives claim that it does not share any data collected by the app, there are several Chinese laws in place that provide CCP [Chinese Communist Party] officials access to all user data collected by Chinese-owned tech companies, like TikTok. This means the CCP has access to sensitive data, like the location of every TikTok user worldwide, including the over 210 million Americans who have downloaded the app.

Likewise, Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin has voiced concerns over the fact that TikTok is subject to Chinese laws that “mandate secret cooperation with intelligence activities of the People’s Republic of China.”

In April, President Biden signed a bipartisan piece of legislation requiring TikTok’s Chinese parent-company, ByteDance, to divest itself of the platform by January 19, 2025. If ByteDance fails to sell TikTok, the law would ban TikTok in the United States.

TikTok’s federal lawsuit claims the law violates the U.S. Constitution and asks a federal court to block the law.

As we have said repeatedly, there is mounting evidence that — by design — social media platforms like TikTok may deliberately push objectionable content to kids and put users’ personal information at risk. With that in mind, it’s good to see policymakers taking action to rein in these tech giants.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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What Would It Look Like to Ban TikTok in America?

Social Media,

Congress is considering legislation that would ban TikTok or force its Chinese parent-company to sell the social media platform.

With an estimated one billion users worldwide and 150 million in the U.S., TikTok is considered by some to be the most popular social media platform in the world — especially among teens and young adults.

The company has struggled to protect private user data from entities in China, and the platform has faced criticism for letting its algorithm serve users what some call a steady “diet of darkness” online.

As U.S. Congressman Bruce Westerman wrote last month,

Although TikTok executives claim that it does not share any data collected by the app, there are several Chinese laws in place that provide CCP officials access to all user data collected by Chinese-owned tech companies, like TikTok. This means the CCP has access to sensitive data, like the location of every TikTok user worldwide, including the over 210 million Americans who have downloaded the app.

The Wall Street Journal recently published a story explaining what it would look like if TikTok were banned in the U.S. You can watch that story below.

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TikTok and Teens: Guest Column

Social Media,

Congress is considering banning the Chinese government-controlled social media platform TikTok. For some, this ban is about national security. For others, it’s about the safety and sanity of our children.  

Today, nearly half of all teens use social media “almost constantly.” Sixty-three percent of them use TikTok, making it the second most used social media platform behind YouTube. 

Some claim that banning TikTok could lead to catastrophic consequences for teens’ mental health. For many teens, according to one Twitter user, “TikTok is their identity.” In other words, they’re addicted, so losing it could lead to mental distress. 

Such an abrupt shift may certainly cause distress, but social media has long fueled anxiety and depression. As Jean Twenge has noted, teens who spend more time behind screens are at a higher risk for depression.  

Thankfully, teens are more than their online personas, likes, follows, or friends. They are embodied persons whose happiness and wholeness depend on living in the real world. Any effort to help them do that is a step in the right direction. 

Copyright 2024 by the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. Reprinted from BreakPoint.org with permission.

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