TikTok Asks Users to Oppose ‘Ban,’ Emboldening Congress Ahead of Vote

TikTok sent a push notification on Wednesday prompting users to call their representatives to “stop a TikTok shutdown.” Inundated with calls, a House committee unanimously backed a proposal that could ban the app, setting up a floor vote as early as next week. 

Key Quotes: TikTok’s message read: “Congress is planning a total ban of TikTok. Speak up now—before your government strips 170 million Americans of their constitutional right to free expression. This will damage millions of businesses, destroy the livelihoods of countless creators across the country, and deny artists an audience.” TikTok also provided a field for users to enter their Zip code and a button to “Call Now.” A GOP aide told Axios (Lean Left bias) that congressional phone lines were “completely bogged down” as a result.

For Context: The White House has indicated that President Joe Biden would sign the bipartisan bill, which would give TikTok five months to separate from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, or be banned from app stores in the U.S. American officials have raised concerns that the Chinese Communist Party could access Americans’ data through ByteDance; TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has denied any such access.

How the Media Covered It: Coverage appeared fairly similar across the political spectrum. Headlines sometimes differed on whether the bill would or just could ban TikTok; a Fox Business (Lean Right bias) headline described a “Bill banning TikTok,” while a CNN Business (Lean Left bias) headline posed the question, “Wait, is America actually banning TikTok now?”