this post was submitted on 20 Apr 2024
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I see no issue with banning tik tok.
It's not even "banning tik-tok". It's "separate your interests, or we block your product".
Which isn't exactly something that we haven't seen before in the U.S. and it for sure isn't anything new in China where plenty of services, games....etc are blocked with "Chinese only" versions of those services.
We forced the sale of Grindr and nobody even brought it up.
Given how many politicians are deeply closeted, I like to imagine they hurried this one along quietly
It's a ban. They have stated in no uncertain terms that they will not sell or separate any interests. It's not for our "security" or any of that absolute BS either. It's for their own profits and because they want people's data.
The fact that you'd want our media to even remotely resemble the highly sensored versions in China is insane to me. Y'all are just happy to go along with this because you don't like tiktok. That's it. That's all it took for a lot of you. I'd say I expected better but it's becoming more obvious every day that lemmy is where the old and out of touch people migrated to. Despite it seeming like it would be the opposite.
You genuinely don't care if the government oversteps as long as it fits your bias. The fact that they couldn't get it to go through as a single issue twice so they had to shove it with other issues just to get their way should be enough to piss most people off but here we are. It's a shame. I'm disappointed in how easily manipulated so many of you are. Truly.
I haven't followed it too closely, but I know this has been years in the making so the company should have a contingency plan. You have to wonder why the company refuses to take steps satisfactory to Congress to ensure that the CCP cannot access user data or influence the content or algorithm. It is economically suicidal to be banned in the US, which makes me think that Bytedance's CCP masters told the company to refuse. Of course, now that the law has been passed, Bytedance will have to separate their interests since I doubt they'll allow the app to be banned. They'd lose most of their advertising revenue if they were banned in the US. Not to mention the fact that a US ban would likely be followed by bans in other countries. I'm sure Bytedance can find a way to have another company manage their data while still making plenty of money. No need to pity a company making billions in revenue on the labour of content creators.
They can't really have a contingency because they won't sell. They can't due to the laws there anyway. It's been plainly stated countless times. We'll see how it goes but regardless the US gov is playing dirty here under the guise of protecting our security. The people clearly said no the first two times and they shoved it through anyway. I don't see how people don't find that at least a little alarming
You make a good point about Bytedance perhaps not being permitted to have a contingency plan. However, the CCP may have one. Whatever Xi says is law in China.
And he's said that companies can't sell property like the TikTok algorithm to other countries. I highly doubt he'll suddenly have a change of heart now. I honestly hope he doesn't because the US shouldn't be making legislation against its own citizens wishes just to fuck with China in the first place.
Why do you say that Congress is making legislation against its own citizens' wishes? A quick Google search shows that polls suggest that twice as many Americans favour the ban as oppose it.
I'm still trying to figure out what the downside of this legislation is. It doesn't ban any specific content or speech, it just bans a particular company from operating a specific platform in the US. Tiktok is still permitted to operate if it is controlled by a company that isn't directly subject to the CCP. If Xi chooses to not let that happen, that is on him. Xi certainly can't cry foul without massive hypocrisy, given that he has already banned virtually all western social media.
Lmao polls. Ok. We'll just ignore the fact that the large public outcry the last two hearings stalled the proceedings forcing them to shove it through with another bill I guess.
It's literally illegal to make legislation targeting a single company. If you don't see a problem with them breaking their own laws to please their corporate overlords then I don't know what else I can tell you.
My favorite part about replies like yours is how willing you are to stoop to the same level of China in retaliation. Even if it impacts millions of US citizens. But that doesn't matter to you because you don't like or use the app so what do you care right? Not to even mention the people that make a living through it.
Whoa, take it easy there, friend. That got personal rather quickly. Are you mad? I don't have a horse in this race one way or the other. I don't use Tiktok but I don't have anything against it either. It seems to me that social media apps pop up like dandelions and the main thing that determines whether or not they thrive is the number of people participating. I guess I'm wondering why anyone should care if Tiktok in particular survives or some other social media platform takes its place. They rise, they fall, but there always seems to be a replacement.
No yeah this whole deal is like. Just a bunch of mildly liberal gen X Linux users, basically, that think they're hot shit because they were right about like half of their opinions like a decade ago and haven't changed since. The amount of people hating on even basic shit like discord here is nuts.
Get with the times, grandpa, we all use pirated windows LTSC with Microsoft activation scripts and various privacy and installation scripts! C'mon! We all use YouTube revanced grandpa! Libtube? What the fuck are you talking about?
Hey I've heard there's this really cool app for lipsyncing and dancing. Apparently it's getting pretty popular. Sounds like you'd have more fun there
You just made my point and you don't even realize it lmao
Okay then, where did all the young and in-touch people end up?
I'm not telling you old man
I don't like TikTok, but I do take issue with the government deciding what is and isn't available to me.
They are not banning the content type that tiktok provides, they are banning the foreign authoritarian government control of American user information. If Bytedance Sells tiktok to a business in a non authoritarian state then they no longer care.
Except they would be ignoring all the other shitty social networks but it's a start.
It's not a start tho, it's killing competition of Facebook and Google. It's consolidating power if anything. I believe this bill has nothing to do with security issues and everything to do with campaign contributions to make sure America never has to compete with another country in this space.
Oh I know their motivation is greed.
eh, It would look like more of a shakedown if it was just the US doing it, but tiktok is getting banned all over the place, particularly for government devices.
what did tiktok do to deserve being banned, and why is it okay for other companies to do that?
Feeding data to the CCP, helping them identify people who can be easily swayed into espionage. Say someone gets into a position of power. "Hey, remember when you were 12 and said this on tik Tok? Now we need you to be out bitch or we're leaking this."
Look at the things that have gone viral on Tik Tok, it's like their algorithm prioritizes things that are toxic to make American youth shittier. Kia boys comes to mind.
There is also the fact that China bans all American social media out of fear that we'd use it to manipulate their people. If they aren't allowing our businesses to compete fairly, why should we allow theirs? Also, they probably are projecting that fear because they are doing exactly that with TikTok.
The app has more permissions than most apps and is highly invasive. They sent a push notification to all their users based on Geo location saying who their rep was and giving their phone number saying to call them to stop this bill. That alone seems like a major abuse of power. They are using the data they have to try to sway the American politicians already.
you've failed to answer my second question, which I believe was the important one: why should this behavior be perfectly legal for everyone other than tiktok?
Yeah it's a good question, and I think the answer should be: it shouldn't. Instead of cracking down on one platform or another, they should be cracking down on the bad behaviors built into those platforms.
But alas, that would require us to elect politicians that understand an ounce of nuance
I agree with you, but I'm assuming malice because I don't think that stupidity adequately explains their behavior. I think that, to them, the problem isn't propaganda and espionage, it's Chinese propaganda and Chinese espionage where American propaganda and American espionage should be. That's why they're not making what tiktok does illegal, and that's why they're trying to force a sale rather than actually banning it.
Not a single thing you said has convinced me. And I am going to get on Tik Tok out of spite when this passes into law.
Sounds like a lose-lose scenario
Not really. It might have something I enjoy on it.
TikTok is very heavily influenced by the CCP and could be used to collect data from Americans (probably they already are). Not wanting your biggest geopolitical rival to harvest data from your citizens is pretty understandable.
Chinese government is a lot less a threat to me compared to the US. We are at most two elections cycles away from a Christian Nationalism state. China is over there, not my problem. I can avoid them if I want.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism
i hate TikTok but also Instagram and YouTube shorts should be in the same list
Except for the part where they couldn't get support for it twice so they shoved it in here to get their way? But that's ok because you don't like the silly dancing app that you know basically nothing about right? Other than "China bad", of course.
I don't give a shit about the China bit, I just think it's dumb and full of misinformation so I really don't care if it's banned. I have no reason to hide my thoughts on this. It's stupid, I think it's cringey as fuck, and I'll be happy to see it go. I know nothing about it because it doesn't remotely interest me in the slightest. I'm sorry you're upset people don't like your stupid little dancing app but lashing out like this changes jack shit. You're right. We don't like it. Nobody here was hiding that.
What misinformation is it full of? You surely must know if you're confidently making this claim.
Honestly? You have clearly never used it. The fact that you're just parroting what you've heard from others brainlessly is what's truly cringy here. Absolutely low IQ behavior. Not worth my time.
Ok, its cool that you believe that. Have a nice day!
Of course you didn't answer the question. I knew you wouldn't.
Cool bro, want a gold star? A cookie maybe?
Are you actually an adult?
Brother, I'm tired of this. I think it's cool that you disagree with me. Not too worried about it. There has got to be better things for you to do than constantly bugging me like this. It's ok for you to think of me however you will. Have a nice day!