Like Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai, and other tech honchos before him, TikTok’s Shou Chew faced aggressive questioning in his first testimony before Congress on Thursday.
But it wasn’t a simple fact-finding inquiry. The company, which is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance, has always delineated its American business from the Chinese operation, but it was clear during Thursday’s proceedings that Congress doesn’t believe it. In fact, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers , chair of the committee, minced no words, telling Chew that: “Your platform should be banned,” and that Chew will probably say anything to prevent it, but “we aren’t buying it.
Under the previous administration, an acquisition deal with Oracle Corp., Walmart Inc. and other investors was hatched but fell apart. But ever since, TikTok has been working with Oracle to have another set of eyes on the data. Internally, the measure is considered a safeguard, and according to Chew, the company intends to move all of its data warehousing and monitoring to American soil.
To a line of questioning from Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., about China’s access to the data, Chew explained that he has seen no sign of that. She reacted by calling it “preposterous.” Others apparently agree, as a number of countries, including the U.S., have prohibited the app on government devices due to security concerns, and countries like India banned this app and others tied to China completely.
Understandably, the stakes are high for Chew, so it’s no surprise that he repeatedly emphasized the separation of powers inside the organization. But representative after representative stated that they just don’t believe him. Representatives such as Russ Fulcher, R-Idaho, leaned into a similar aspect of the platform: its virality and influence on consumers, especially younger users.
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