State media slams 'anti-China show' as US lawmakers try to force sale of TikTok
State media slams 'anti-China show' as US lawmakers try to force sale of TikTok
TikTok's more aggressive push was quickly praised in China.
Hu Xijin, former editor-in-chief of the nationalist tabloid Global Times, said in a post on X on Sunday that he supported “TikTok's harsh response.” The Global Times is affiliated with the People's Daily, the mouthpiece of China's ruling Communist Party.
“TikTok will not sit back and wait for death,” the Shanghai Observer, a news site affiliated with state-run newspaper Jiefang Daily, said in a report on Friday. “We mobilized users to fight back.”
TikTok's response reflects some of the tactics used by US tech giants during the previous Internet law era. In 2012, some of the largest U.S. platforms, including Google, Reddit, and Firefox developer Mozilla, blacked out their websites and logos in response to an anti-piracy bill they said would stifle internet freedom. did.
One Weibo user, nicknamed XuGuliang, pointed to another incident in 2014 in which Uber successfully lobbied against a state law in Virginia by mobilizing users to fight back.
But in recent years, internet platforms have been put on the defensive by a flurry of legislative proposals and regulations around the world aimed at curbing their influence and market power. Those concerns have only grown around TikTok in the U.S., with lawmakers worried that the platform won't be able to operate independently from the Chinese government.
“The influx of calls may make U.S. officials even more determined to suppress it.” [TikTok]” wrote a Weibo user called Roc_Xu.
According to estimates from Affable.ai in June 2023, nearly one-fifth of TikTok users are under the voting age of 18.
A new bill from the U.S. House of Representatives would require app distribution platforms like Apple's App Store and Google Play to use “applications controlled by a foreign adversary, such as TikTok,” or that are based or primarily operate in the country. Requires the removal of other applications that are deemed to be controlled by a person or entity that does so. Number of countries considered hostile.
With Mr. Biden now supporting the bill, Mr. Trump, who is considered to be the Republican candidate for this year's presidential election, has reversed his stance.