Not really. People started trying to regulate Tik Tok way before the war because it’s owned by China and was selling and exploiting user information which was supposed to be private to drive views to propaganda and influencers that were mentally dangerous. So, there’s that.
It’s just because of Chinese ownership. All of the social media platforms do that second part and the vast majority of boosters of the TikTok ban do not care.
Sinophobia was part of it, sure, but the reason they finally rammed it through and so quickly is because they were scared shitless at how badly they'd lost control of the narrative on Israel.
www.axios.com/local/salt-l...
It’s not Sinophobia. It’s the Chinese government that’s nefarious. It’s hard not to associate all the people of a country but we’re not all MAGAts are we?
The funny part is, China has only about a 20% stake in TikTok. They created their own version to use in China because the Singaporean CEO wouldn't censor it as much as they wanted. Its HQ offices are in Singapore and LA.
That’s a little misleading. China owns a 20% share, but that includes a share class that gives the government ultimate control over a lot of decisions.
That’s why this a privacy issue; the selling of personal data by any platform, from social media to PACs and politicians is what gets people burrowing down rabbit holes. That’s how you get the “addiction.”
I agree that it’s a privacy issue and that’s actually why I oppose the TikTok ban. They’re going to ban one bad actor then declare mission accomplished.
Trump. In a word. There has always been an undercurrent of hate and rage in this country. But we were civilized and scorned those who expressed it. Trump gave people the right to fly their hate flags. The best rule is: “Would I say this to someone’s face?” If no, delete. If yes, get blocked
