TikTok asking its users to call their representatives seems to have backfired. From the committee chair Cathy McMorris:
We also witnessed firsthand, in real time, how the Chinese Communist Party can weaponize platforms like TikTok to manipulate the American people.
There’s bipartisan support for forcing new ownership of the app and I think I’m cool with it.
@manton Maybe it's being a Canadian looking in on this from the outside, but it feels fairly hypocritical for the US to point a finger at TikTok when US companies blazed the trail for data collection and manipulation that companies like TikTok are just following.
@iChris I agree there are plenty of concerns around data collection in US-based companies too. TikTok is a unique case though because of China. If TikTok was based in Europe (for example) we wouldn’t see this effort, but I’d still have problems with the addictive nature of TikTok and potential for viral misinformation.