Shou Chew is scheduled to confirm the safety and impartiality of his company globally.
Recent years have seen several US lawmakers expressing concerns about the wide use of the popular social media platform TikTok. There are worries about the security implications of both TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, being of Chinese origin and prevalent on American smartphones.
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To address these concerns, TikTok’s CEO, Shou Chew, will testify before the US Congress today. His prepared statements emphasize the security of his company.
Chew’s statement reads, “Let me state this clearly: ByteDance does not represent China or any other country.”
The use of TikTok has been restricted on the phones of government officials in various states, and there’s a discussion of a potential ban on the app for all citizens. In response, Chew warns that a blanket ban is not the solution.
Chew’s statement further states, “We believe that banning TikTok, which would harm American small businesses, impact the economy, silence the voices of over 150 million Americans, and reduce competition in a concentrated market, is not the answer to a solvable issue.”
LIVE: TikTok CEO Shou Chew testifies at a House hearing as Congress weighs banning the app in the US https://t.co/Fmv8MED8z0 https://t.co/0bV1o7Tudt
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Despite Chew’s efforts, many Senators and Congress members remain skeptical about the platform. Senator Mark R. Warner, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, expressed doubts about TikTok’s transparency and credibility, stating, “Mr. Chew’s willingness to answer questions before Congress does not erase TikTok’s lack of transparency, repeated obfuscations, and misstatements of fact.”
