TikTok CEO admits his kids don't use the app

Mr. Show Chew faced US congressmen for the first time in a hearing on March 23.

Rarely appearing in interviews, this is a rare occasion for the public to hear the views of the CEO of the globally popular short video application, but it also makes Western officials, especially the US, worried.

For months, Washington has been trying to force ByteDance to sell TikTok to an American company or ban the app entirely in the US, where it has more than 150 million users.

Washington's clear stance

The more than five-hour hearing began with calls to ban the app in the U.S. It offered a vivid picture of the bipartisan push to crack down on the popular video app and TikTok’s uphill battle to improve relations with Washington.

Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, chairwoman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, opened the hearing on March 23 by telling TikTok CEO Shou Chew: “Your platform should be banned .”

Mr Chew stressed TikTok’s independence from China. “TikTok itself does not operate in mainland China, we have headquarters in Los Angeles and Singapore, and we currently have 7,000 employees in the US,” he said.

Mr. Shou Chew appeared at the US Congress before a hearing related to TikTok on March 23. (Photo: Reuters)

TikTok does not operate in China. But because the Chinese government has significant leverage over businesses under its jurisdiction, the theory from the US side is that ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, could be forced to cooperate with a variety of security operations, including the transfer of TikTok data, according to CNN .

Mr Chew’s argument that his company is not a Chinese arm seemed to fall on deaf ears, with several members of Congress interrupting the TikTok CEO to say they simply did not believe him.

TikTok is no different from other American tech apps

When lawmakers questioned TikTok's collection of user data, Show Chew stressed that the data TikTok collects is "similar to other companies in the same industry".

Independent researchers have backed Chew’s assertion. In 2020, the Washington Post reported that the app did not appear to collect any more data than popular social networks today.

However, even if TikTok collects the same amount of information as Facebook or Twitter, it's still a huge amount of data, including information about videos watched, private messages, and even location and contacts if the user allows access.

The Impact of TikTok on Children

Besides national security, many lawmakers also raised concerns about TikTok's impact on children.

Democratic Rep. Frank Pallone cited research saying TikTok's algorithm has recommended negative videos to teens, such as encouraging suicide, self-harm and eating disorders.

This is a rare public appearance for Mr. Show Chew. (Photo: Reuters)

Congressman Gus Bilirakis also said that the lack of adequate moderation leaves children exposed to content that promotes self-harm. Citing evidence of harmful content, he criticized “it is unacceptable that even knowing all this danger, you still claim that TikTok is something great to watch.”

TikTok has updated some features, such as limiting viewing time for those under 18. However, US lawmakers say young people can easily find ways to bypass this.

MP Nanette Barragan also asked Mr Chew about his previous statements that he did not let his children use TikTok. " What age do you think is appropriate for children to use TikTok? " Ms Barragan asked.

TikTok's CEO said his children don't use the app because there is no TikTok platform specifically for children under 13 in Singapore. Meanwhile, there is a "TikTok for Young Users" version in the US, according to the Guardian .

“Our approach is to offer different experiences for different age groups. And parents will talk to their children to decide what is best,” said Mr Chew.

Avoid the question

Mr Chew was criticised for dodging questions. He countered that the US Congress did not care about his answers.

US lawmakers compared the March 23 hearing to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's testimony five years ago, also from a popular social media platform, but controversial for its content and collection of user data.

“You remind me of Mark Zuckerberg. And now you do the same thing, with a series of vague answers, without confirming whether it is a yes or a no,” said Democratic Rep. Tony Cardenas.

Mr. Mark Zuckerberg (left) during a hearing before the US Congress in 2018. (Photo: Slate)

Facebook CEO Zuckerberg also attended the hearing in 2018, and reportedly gave a disheartening testimony to Congress.

Before the hearing, Mr. Chew was said to have spent days preparing to answer questions in Congress. However, TikTok said that the US Congress did not care about what the CEO said.

“Unfortunately, the hearing day was dominated by politics, and failed to acknowledge that we have real solutions,” a TikTok spokesperson said.

After Rep. Kat Cammack’s lengthy attack on TikTok, CEO Show Chew asked committee chair McMorris Rodgers, “ Can I rebut?”, but received a shake of the head from Ms. Rodgers.

Outside the hearing room

In a separate interview, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said TikTok should be terminated “one way or another” . However, he added that it was unclear whether forcing ByteDance to sell TikTok to a US company would be enough.

Mr. Blinken asserted that the app posed a threat to US national security, but stopped short of saying it should be banned.

Meanwhile, the US Treasury Department affirmed that it will continue to review transactions if they pose potential national security risks.

For more than two years, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) — an agency of the US Treasury Department — and TikTok have been negotiating a deal that would address US security concerns while still allowing the app to continue operating.

But in his testimony, Chew attempted to allay longstanding concerns about the app, calling fears about the Chinese government accessing TikTok’s user data “hypothetical.”

“I think a lot of the risks that are being pointed out are hypothetical and theoretical risks. I haven't seen any evidence,” said Mr Chew.

(Source: ZingNews/CNN)

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Source: https://vtc.vn/ceo-tiktok-thua-nhan-con-minh-khong-dung-ung-dung-ar760611.html