As the popular video-sharing platform TikTok faces pressure from the US government to reshape the way it deals with user data and potential security risks, nine members of Congress are rallying to its defense on, you guessed it, TikTok.
These elected officials—a bipartisan cast dissimilar in almost every other respect— are using the platform to make their case, urging Americans to edge back from what they call a potentially harmful ban.
On July 17, Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton’s office issued a video on TikTok asserting that allowing Chinese ownership of the app gives Beijing access to vast troves of Americans’ videos and information.
But at least nine other lawmakers, including both Democrats and Republicans, have since used the platform to challenge that idea.
Democratic California Rep. Judy Chu argued that it was “not the time” for a ban, noting that most TikTok users are children and teens in her state who have grown to love the app.
Texas Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw, who has gained a large fan base on the platform, said any move to shut the app off would be “foolish,” noting that bad actors could always find new networks regardless of the ban.
This collective dismissal of a ban has been echoed by other representatives such as Tennessee Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn, who has argued that a firm and direct regulatory approach makes more sense than a blanket prohibition.
New York Democratic Rep. Grace Meng stressed the same point in a tweet that same day: “Shutting down TikTok would not play into the hands of bad actors, but into the hands of those actually trying to mask their identity from the public.”
These nine lawmakers, from the comfort of their own living rooms and offices, have been vocal advocates for the platform, making their stances known to millions of viewers. As the conversation continues in Washington and Beijing, it will be interesting to see if it prompts policy changes and what kind of reinforcements these members will bring forward.
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