By: Ethan & Connie Cao
As countries worldwide decide to ban the very problematic app, TikTok. TikTok is a video-sharing app used by billions that allow users to create and share short-form videos on any topic. Joe Biden has had conferences with Justin Trudeau as they consider banning TikTok. However, the company that owns Tiktok, Bytedance fought against this statement in court.
ByteDance was founded in March 2012 by Zhang Yiming, and it is best known for its mobile apps with entertainment value. Many countries, including Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, have already banned this controversial app. These countries made a good decision.
Many people have said that TikTok is damaging their lives and their children’s lives because they have very bad impressions of the people in the media. But these concerns aren’t why the app is being discussed by governments around the world. TikTok is banned because the government believes it is unsafe because it is run by China. China can see the location of each person on TikTok. They believe that it is not safe for their people because China is an enemy in Ukraine - Russia war. Another big concern is that China’s government could use TikTok’s secret algorithm to spread false information or to shape the opinions of its users.
Last December, TikTok admitted that some of its workers had tracked reporters in the US and UK. TikTok claimed that the tracking was a mistake and that the workers involved were fired. Joe Biden has told Bytedance to sell TikTok to a US company, or they will risk banning it fully.
Experts point out that many US companies, including Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, also have secret algorithms that collect a lot of information. Some experts believe that the best way to protect users is not to ban companies, but another way. A better way idea would be to create strong user privacy laws and ensure that all companies comply with them. In conclusion, TikTok should be carefully monitored rather than banned.