A bill that could lead to a nation-wide TikTok ban is gaining momentum. Here’s what to know

TikTok is once again in a precarious position.

This time, it comes in the form of a bill that would ban the popular social media platform unless it cuts ties with its Beijing-based parent company ByteDance.

A House committee on Thursday unanimously approved a bipartisan bill that would require Chinese companies to sell TikTok and other apps they own within six months of enactment to avoid a nationwide ban. did. The bill also creates a process by which the executive branch can ban access to other apps that pose a threat to national security.

House Minority Leader Steve Scalise announced Thursday that he will bring the bill to a House vote next week. It’s unclear what will happen in the Senate, where multiple bills aimed at banning TikTok are stalled.

“If it passes, I’ll sign it,” President Joe Biden told reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Friday.

Here’s what you need to know: Why is the lawmaker concerned about TikTok?

Lawmakers from both parties have long expressed concern that Chinese authorities could force ByteDance to hand over data about the 170 million Americans who use TikTok. This concern is due to a series of Chinese national security laws that require organizations to assist in intelligence gathering (of which ByteDance is also likely to be subject) and other widespread ways in which the authoritarian Chinese government exerts control. arises from.

TikTok has long denied claims that it could be used as a tool by the Chinese government. The company said it has never shared U.S. user data with Chinese authorities and would not do so if asked. To date, the US government has also provided no evidence that TikTok has shared such information with Chinese authorities.

Aside from security concerns, some lawmakers, researchers and critics of TikTok have also praised the app. Suppress content that is disadvantageous to the Chinese government, TikTok denies. What happened to previous attempts to ban TikTok?

In 2020, former President Donald Trump attempted to ban the social media platform through an executive order, but was blocked by a court following the TikTok lawsuit.

The Biden administration has rescinded that executive order, but a review of the platform by the secretive Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States continues, and the government, which allegedly threatened to ban TikTok last year if its Chinese government owners did not sell a stake, continues. It is an internal committee. The White House confirmed last month that the review was ongoing.

Other efforts by federal lawmakers to pass a nationwide ban stalled last year due to lobbying efforts by TikTok, the influencers who use the platform, and small businesses. The American Civil Liberties Union and some digital rights groups oppose banning TikTok on free speech grounds, and the latest House bill would help Americans who rely on the app for information, advocacy and entertainment. Alleges that it violates the rights of Latest bill?

TikTok sent out notices to some users this week asking them to call their representatives about the action, which it dubbed the “TikTok Shutdown.”

The company warned users that Congress was planning a “total ban” on the platform, which would “hurt millions of businesses, destroy the livelihoods of countless creators across the country, and deny artists audiences.” He said there is a possibility that

Many users flooded Congressional offices with calls Thursday, and some hung up on them.

In a joint statement released Thursday night, Mike Gallagher, the Republican chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and the committee’s ranking Democrat, Raja Krishnamoorthi, said they believe TikTok’s It condemned what it called an intimidation campaign. Lawmakers who introduced the bill said the bill does not ban TikTok and is “to ensure” that it is not aimed at confronting the Chinese Communist Party.

Krishnamoorthi also said TikTok’s notification to users backfired and “proved the point” of the bill.

Referring to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, he said, “The fact that they used geolocation targeting to track minor children and had them call their Congressional offices with false information about the bill made it very difficult.” Many Electricity and Energy Committee members voted in favor of the bill.” Is a nationwide ban possible?

yes.TikTok could be banned in the US if this bill is signed and ByteDance chooses not to sell

Under the law, the platform would be banned from app stores and web hosting services provided by Apple and Google until the sale occurs. But even if that were to happen, users would likely be able to access the platform using a virtual private network that circumvents such restrictions, said Roger Entner, communications analyst and founder of Recon Analytics. states.

So far, most countries with restrictions on TikTok have banned its use on government devices. But a handful of countries have also imposed nationwide bans, including India, which banned TikTok and other Chinese platforms in 2020 citing privacy and security concerns.

Meanwhile, China itself has banned international social media platforms such as Facebook and X from its borders. How will Prohibition affect Americans?

A potential nationwide ban would be bad news for the company’s e-commerce arm, TikTok Shop, and small and medium-sized businesses that rely on the platform for marketing and selling products. It will also affect the lives of social media influencers, who have spent years cultivating followers on the platform and relying on it to earn brand deals and other types of income.

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AP journalists Kevin Freking and Josh Boak contributed to this report from Washington.