WASHINGTON—A bill that could lead to the popular video-sharing app TikTok being unavailable in the United States is quickly gaining traction in the House as lawmakers voice concerns about the potential for the platform to surveil and manipulate Americans.
FANS sit under a TikTok ad at a baseball game at Yankee Stadium, April 14, 2023, in New York. A bill that could lead to the popular video-sharing app TikTok being unavailable in the United States is quickly gaining traction in the House. Lawmakers advanced legislation against TikTok Thursday as they voiced concerns about the potential for the platform to surveil and manipulate Americans.
The bill takes a two-pronged approach. First, it requires ByteDance Ltd., which is based in Beijing, to divest TikTok and other applications it controls within 180 days of enactment of the bill or those applications will be prohibited in the United States. Second, it creates a narrow process to let the Executive branch prohibit access to an app owned by a foreign adversary if it poses a threat to national security.
President Donald Trump attempted to ban TikTok through an executive order, but the courts blocked the action after TikTok sued, arguing such actions would violate free speech and due process rights.“This bill is an outright ban of TikTok, no matter how much the authors try to disguise it.