US likely to follow India’s footsteps and ban China-owned TikTok unless…

In a move that could reshape the landscape of social media in the United States, a group of lawmakers introduced a bill on Tuesday, citing threats to national security, demanding that China’s ByteDance sell off TikTok within six months or face a ban in the country.

The proposed legislation, which has gained traction across party lines, is regarded as the most significant threat yet to the wildly popular short-form video app.

The bill, make by Representative Mike Gallagher, the Republican chair of the House of Representatives’ select China committee, emphasized concerns over national security and Chinese ownership of TikTok. The effort seeks to sever ties between TikTok and its parent company ByteDance, potentially leading to a ban by U.S.-based web hosting services and app stores.

Co-sponsored by over a dozen lawmakers, including Representative Elise Stefanik, a member of House Republican leadership, the legislation aims to protect American social media users from potential digital surveillance and influence operations orchestrated by foreign regimes.

In response to this, TikTok argued that the bill effectively imposes an outright ban on the platform, infringing upon the First Amendment rights of its 170 million American users and impacting the livelihoods of 5 million small businesses. Despite TikTok’s denial of sharing U.S. user data with the Chinese government, lawmakers, led by Representative Dan Crenshaw, assert their intent to ban the app outright.