TikTok star with 1.1 million followers reveals why US must pass ban on China

Release time：2024-05-21 07:01:45 Source：Culture Chronicle news portal

A TikTok star with 1.1 million followers has said he is in favor of the U.S. banning the popular app after becoming alarmed at how the algorithm is now presenting him with increasingly disturbing content.

The House passed legislation on Saturday that would ban TikTok in the United States if the popular social media platform's China-based owner doesn't sell its stake within a year.

Comedian Zach Sage Fox has said he can see the upside of a ban after becoming concern about the platform's impact, particularly when it comes to sensitive issues such as the Israel-Palestine conflict.

'I am terrified of what I am seeing on TIkTok,' Fox told the New York Post. 

'In the last few months, in regard to the Israel-Palestine conflict, for all the biggest sources of misinformation, TikTok is just a gold mine,' he said.

Comedian Zach Sage Fox says he is in favor of a ban on TikTok due to the platform's role in spreading misinformation about sensitive topics like the Israel-Gaza conflict

'In the last few months, in regard to the Israel-Palestine conflict, for all the biggest sources of misinformation, TikTok is just a gold mine,' Fox said

The House passed a bill to ban TikTok amid concerns about hate speech and misinformation with even some TikTok content creators supportive

'It seems like there is something happening in the algorithm that is very much trying to soil the West.' 

Fox's concerns are shared by those in political circles in the U.S. who have voiced alarm over the popularity of TikTok with young people, alleging that it allows Beijing to spy on users. 

It has 170 million in the United States alone with 76 percent of Gen Z admitting to using the app.

Critics also say TikTok is subservient to Beijing and a conduit to spread propaganda. China and the company deny such claims.

'I think, glass half full, millions of young people are cut off from information that is funneled from China and will turn to sources that, while not perfect, will have at least some oversight on a factual level,' Fox said. 

The bill that could lead to a total TikTok ban in the U.S. passed 360 to 58, with broad bipartisan support.

It could now trigger the rare step of barring a company from operating in the US market and now goes to the Senate for a vote next week. 

The bill that could lead to a total TikTok ban in the U.S. passed 360 to 58, with broad bipartisan support. Speaker Mike Johnson speaks to members of the press after the House of Representatives passed bills

The TikTok measure was part of a wider set of foreign aid legislation that the House passed on Saturday afternoon, totaling $95 billion for U.S. partners abroad. 

The package in total gives $26 billion to Israel, $60.8 billion to Ukraine and $8 billion to the Indo-Pacific through a combination of military and humanitarian aid. 

President Joe Biden has stated he will sign the legislation. He reiterated his concerns about TikTok in a telephone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier this month.

TikTok quickly complained after Saturday's vote, saying in a statement 'it is unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of important foreign and humanitarian assistance to once again jam through a ban bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans, devastate 7 million businesses, and shutter a platform that contributes $24 billion to the U.S. economy, annually.' 

Under the bill, ByteDance would have to sell the app within a year or be excluded from Apple and Google's app stores in the United States.

The House of Representatives last month approved a similar bill cracking down on TikTok, but the measure got held up in the Senate.

'It seems like there is something happening in the algorithm that is very much trying to soil the West,' TikTok content creator Zach Fox said 

TikTok content creator Zach Sage Fox is pictured with New York City Mayor Eric Adams

Steven Mnuchin, who served as US treasury secretary under former president Donald Trump, has said he is interested in acquiring TikTok and has assembled a group of investors.

TikTok has been in the crosshairs of US authorities for years, with authorities saying the platform allows Beijing to snoop on users in the United States.

But a law banning it could trigger lawsuits. This bill gives the US president the authority to designate other applications as a threat to national security if they are controlled by a country deemed hostile.

Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, formerly Twitter, came out Friday against banning TikTok, saying it went against freedom of expression.

'TikTok should not be banned in the USA, even though such a ban may benefit the X platform,' Musk said in a post on the social network he acquired in 2022.

'Doing so would be contrary to freedom of speech and expression,' said Musk.

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