Time seems to be ticking for that beloved clock app that most of us have come to know and love (or maybe simply become addicted to). As TikTok CEO Shou Chew appears before Congress, users are becoming more and more anxious that the app may be banned by the US government.
Earlier in March, when the hearings first began, Washington Republican Rep. Cathay McMorris Rodgers, who also serves as the chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, opened the first hearing by telling CEO Shou: “Your platform should be banned.” Chew has spent the rest of his time before Congress desperately trying to convince lawmakers that his company is not a threat to US security. Chew, a former Goldman Sachs investment banker and brief Facebook intern, has served as CEO of the video-sharing app since 2021. With his background in investment banking and experience in both Western and Chinese business worlds, Chew’s upstanding reputation precedes him.
The main issue that US lawmakers have with TikTok is its apparent affiliation with mainland China. The app is owned by the Chinese internet giant ByteDance, which has raised concerns that the app may be forced at some point to share confidential data about its American users with the Chinese government. As US-China relations worsen, US politicians fear that sensitive data will be compromised. Besides privacy concerns, Congress members tried to highlight the potential negative effects TikTok may have on its younger audience members, citing concerns about content and ad-placements.
However, as the hearings have unraveled before the public eye, many have watched the Harvard-educated CEO defend himself rather competently, remaining calm even while being interrupted multiple times and having his expertise questioned. Chew has stressed how the app is based in Singapore and Los Angeles, with over 7,000 employees within the US. The CEO also highlighted how US founded tech giants such as Facebook have numerous privacy concerns as well, quickly referencing the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Shew stated, “I don’t think ownership is the issue here. With a lot of respect, American social companies don’t have a good track record with data privacy and user security. I mean, look at Facebook and Cambridge Analytica, just one example.”
Chew has maintained that although he does not want to trivialize any concerns users and the US government may have with TikTok’s privacy settings, he believes many of the hypothetical risks pointed out are exactly that: hypothetical. In his testimony, Chew continued further that many of the claims made against his app are still mainly unsubstantiated.
For now, TikTok users can continue to enjoy scrolling away mindlessly on the app, and it is probable to assume that most Andrews students will remain on the app as well. Truth be told, even if TikTok were to be banned, many analysts pointed out that most users would simply flock to other apps that surveil users just as much – if not more – than critics point out TikTok does. To those concerned about TikTok’s potential as a security threat, perhaps more attention should be placed to the numerous apps that also acquire and store user data, such as Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.