Written By Tiffany Johnson
It has been circulating that big tech CEO of Meta; Mark Zuckerberg has been lobbying congress to ban TikTok for what many allege are for more sinister reasons then just “privacy concerns”. Mark has been unable to re-produce TikToks algorithm or effectively pay his platforms creators, and now has moved to asking the government for help in banning TikTok and possibly outing its 150 million American users.
What follows is a flash transcript. Compare to the video before quoting.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
Here we go. The committee will come to order. Before I begin, I’d like to take a moment to address the guest in the audience. First of all, thank you for coming. We think engaged citizens are welcome and a valuable part of the political process. I do want to remind the guest in the audience that the chair is obliged under the house rules and the rules of the committee to maintain order and preserve decorum in the committee room. I know that we have deep feelings on these issues and that we all may not agree on everything, but I ask that we abide by these rules and be respectful of our audience members, our viewers, and our witnesses. The chair appreciates the audience’s cooperation and maintaining order as we have a full discussion on these important issues. The chair recognizes herself for five minutes for an opening statement.
Mr. Chew, you are here because the American people need the truth about the threat Tiktok poses to our national and personal security. Tiktok collects nearly every data point imaginable from people’s location to what they type and copy who they talk to, biometric data and more, even if they’ve never been on TikTok. Your trackers are embedded in sites across the web. Tiktok surveils us all, and the Chinese Communist Party is able to use this as a tool to manipulate America as a whole. We do not trust TikTok will ever embrace American values, values for freedom, human rights, and innovation. Tiktok has repeatedly chosen the path for more control, more surveillance, and more manipulation. Your platform should be banned. I expect today you’ll say anything to avoid this outcome. Like you are 100% responsible for what TikTok does, that you suddenly endorse a national data privacy standard.
That Project Texas is more than a marketing scheme, that TikTok doesn’t harm our innocent children, or that your ties to the Chinese Communist Party through ByteDance is just a myth. We aren’t buying it. In fact, when you celebrate the 150 million American users on TikTok, it emphasizes the urgency for Congress to act. That is 150 million Americans that CCP can collect sensitive information on and control what we ultimately see, hear, and believe. Tiktok has repeatedly been caught in the lie that it does not answer to the CCP through ByteDance. Today, the CCPs laws require Chinese companies like ByteDance to spy on their behalf. That means any Chinese company must grant the CCP access and manipulation capabilities as a design feature. Right now, ByteDance is under investigation by the DOJ for surveilling American journalists, both digital activity and physical movements through TikTok. We also know that many of your employees still report directly to Beijing.
Internal recordings reveal there is a backdoor for China to access user data across the platform. Your employees said, quote, everything is seen in China. A gateway Desp is not the only way TikTok and ByteDance can do the bidding of the CCP. Tiktok has helped you race events and people China wants the world to forget it’s even censored. An American teenager who exposed CCP’s genocide in torture of uighur Muslims. The facts show that ByteDance is beholden to the CCP and ByteDance and TikTok are one in the same. Tiktok also targets our children. The four U algorithm is a tool for TikTok to own their attention and prey on their innocence. Within minutes of creating an account, your algorithm can promote suicide self-harm, and eating disorders to children. It encourages challenges for them to put their lives in danger and allows adults to prey on our beautiful beloved daughters.
It’s also a portal for drug dealers to sell illicit fentanyl that China has banned yet is helping Mexican cartels produce, send across our border and poison our children in China. The CCP proactively prohibits this type of TikTok content that promotes death and despair to kids from the data it collects to the content it controls. Tiktok is a grave threat of foreign influence in American life. It’s been said, it’s like allowing the Soviet Union the power to produce Saturday morning cartoons during the Cold War, but much more powerful and much more dangerous. Banning your platform will address the immediate threats. Make no mistake, this committee is also looking to the future. America needs to be prepared to stop the next technological tool or weapon China will use for its own strategic gain. We must prevent any app, website, and platform like TikTok from ever Spy on Americans again, and we must provide the strongest protections possible for our children. That is why this committee is leading on a national privacy and data security standard. It restricts sensitive American data from reaching our adversaries to begin with, and what big tech and data brokers collect, process, store and sell. It makes it illegal for any platform to track and target children under 17.
Mr. Chew, the committee has requested that TikTok appeared before us for a long time. For those we serve, we’re glad the day has finally come. Today, the world is watching. ByteDance is watching. The Chinese Communist Party is watching, but the answers you owe are to the American people of free people who cherish their God-given unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all they deserve the truth. Complete honesty is the standard and the law you are being held to before this committee as we seek to get answers in a full understanding of what happens at TikTok under your watch. Thank you Chair. Now recognizes the ranking member, Mr. Pallone for five minutes.
Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ):
Thank you Madam Chair. And let me say that I agree with much of what you just said, and I certainly appreciate your enthusiasm and your commenting on being a mother and being concerned about children. And I’m glad that we are having this hearing today. Big Tech has transformed the information superhighway into a super spreader of harmful content, invasive surveillance practices, and addictive and damaging design features. Data is big tech’s most valuable commodity, and by collecting far more user data than they need, big tech platforms can use, share, and sell information to generate billions of dollars in revenue. Today, the American people are powerless to stop this invasion of their privacy, and we can’t wait any longer to pass comprehensive national privacy legislation that puts people back in control of their data. We must hold big tech accountable for its actions, and transparency is critical to that accountability.
In the past several congresses, this committee has heard from senior executives of other social media platforms about troubling and repeated instances where they put profits over people. Now, today, we intend to bring more transparency to TikTok, which is controlled by its Beijing communists based parent company, ByteDance. And while TikTok videos provide a new fun way for people to express their creativity and enjoy the videos of others, the platform also threatens the health, privacy and security of the American people. And I’m not convinced that the benefits outweigh the risks that poses to Americans in its present form. More than 130 million people in the United States use TikTok every month, including two thirds of American teenagers. Tiktok collects and compiles vast troves of valuable personal information to create an addictive algorithm that is able to predict with uncanny accuracy, which videos will keep users scrolling even if the content is harmful, inaccurate or fees, destructive behavior or extreme misbeliefs.
Now, the combination of talk’s Beijing, communist based China ownership and its popularity exacerbates its danger to our country and to our privacy. The Chinese Communist government can compel companies based in Beijing like TikTok to share data with the communist government through existing Beijing law or coercion. National security experts are sounding the alarm warning that the Chinese communist government could require TikTok to compromise device security, maliciously access American user data, promote pro-communist propaganda and undermine American interests. Disinformation campaigns could be launched by the co, by the Chinese Communist government through TikTok, which has already become rife with misinformation and disinformation illegal activities and hate speech. A recent report found that 20% of TikTok search results on prominent news topics contain misinformation. Social media’s profitability depends on growth and engagement. More eyes on their content for longer time leads to more advertising dollars and revenue generation.
Addictive algorithms are fine tuned to optimize growth and engagement without necessarily taking into account potential harms to users, children and teens are particularly vulnerable. Frequent online use of interactive media on digital devices is associated with increased levels of depression among middle and high school students. Research has found that talk’s addictive algorithms recommend videos to teens that create and exacerbate feelings of emotional distress, including videos promoting suicide, self-harm, and eating disorders. Public outrage and hollow apologies alone are not going to reign in big tech. Congress has to enact laws protecting the American public from such online harms, and we simply cannot wait any longer to pass the comprehensive privacy legislation that I authored with the then Ranking Member. Now, Chair Rodgers last Congress that overwhelmingly advanced out of the committee. It ensures that companies, wherever they live, it ensures, I should say, that consumers, wherever they live in this country, will have meaningful control over their personal information.
Our legislation establishes baseline data minimization requirements, ensuring that companies only collect process and transfer data necessary to provide a service, and it provides heightened privacy protections for children and teenagers. So I think it’s time to make this legislation the law of the land, and we also have to examine the reforms needed to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. The liability shield for social media platforms has for too long been abused and led to a lack of accountability for social media platforms. So I hope we can find a bipartisan path forward on that issue too. And I think you’re having a hearing next week on it so we can stop the very real harms to our country and democracy under the current law. I’d. I’d look forward to the discussion today as we continue to bring accountability to Big Tech. And let me say to Mr. Chew, I know this is about TikTok, but I am focusing all my attention not only on TikTok, but on these concerns, wide concerns about social media and the protection of privacy. And with that, I yield back. Thank you again Madame Chair for having this very important hearing.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
Our witness today is Mr. Shou Chew, Chief Executive Officer of TikTok. You’re recognized for five minutes.
Shou Chew:
Thank you. Chair Rodgers, Ranking Member Pallone, Members of the Committee. Thank you for your time. I am Shou Chew and I’m from Singapore. That’s where I was born as for my parents, and after serving in Singapore’s military, I moved to the UK to attend college and then here to the US to attend business school. I actually met my wife here, by the way. She was just born a few miles away from here in Virginia. Two years ago, I became the CEO of TikTok. Today we have more than a billion monthly active users around the world, including over 150 million in the United States. Our app is a place where people can be creative and curious, and we’re close to 5 million American businesses. Mostly small businesses go to find new customers and to fuel their growth. Now, as TikTok has grown, we’ve tried to learn the lessons of companies that have come before us, especially when it comes to the safety of teenagers.
While the vast majority of people on TikTok are over 18, one of and one of our fastest growing demographics are people over 35. We spent a lot of time adopting measures to protect teenagers. Many of those measures are firsts for the social media industry. We, for, we forbid, direct messaging for people under 16, and we have a 16 minute watch time by default for those under 18. We have a suite of family pairing tools so that parents can participate in their teens’ experience and make the choices they think are right for their family. We want TikTok to be a place where teenagers can come to learn, which is why we recently launched a feed that exclusively features educational videos about stem. STEM videos already have over 116 billion views on TikTok, and I think TikTok is inspiring a new generation to discover a passion for math and science.
Now I would also like to talk about national security concerns that you have raised that we take very, very seriously. Let me start by addressing a few misconceptions about ByteDance, of which we are a subsidiary. ByteDance is not owned or controlled by the Chinese government. It’s a private company. 60% of the company is owned by global institutional investors. 20% is owned by the founder and 20% owned by employees around the world. ByteDance’s five board members, three of them are American. Now TikTok itself is not available in mainland China. We’re headquartered in Los Angeles and in Singapore, and we have 7,000 employees in the US today. Still, we have heard important concerns about the potential for unwanted foreign access to US data and potential manipulation of the TikTok US ecosystem. Our approach has never been to dismiss or trivialize any of these concerns. We have addressed them with real action now.
That’s what we’ve been doing for the last two years, building what amounts to a firewall. The seals of protected US user data from unauthorized foreign access. The bottom line is this American data stored on American soil by an American company overseen by American personnel. We call this initiative Project Texas. That’s why Oracle is headquartered today. US TikTok data is stored by default in Oracle service only vetted personnel operating in a new company called TikTok. US data security can control access to this data. Now, additionally, we have plans for this company to report to an independent American board with strong security credentials. Now, there’s still some work to do. We have legacy US data sitting in our service in Virginia and in Singapore. We’re deleting those and we expect that to be complete this year. When that is done, all protected US data will be under the protection of US law and under the control of the US led security team.
This eliminates the concern that some of you have shared with me that TikTok user data can be subject to Chinese law. This goes further, by the way, than what any other company in our industry have done. We will also provide unprecedented transparency and security for the source code for the TikTok app and recommendation engine. Third party validators like Oracle and others will review and validate our source code and algorithms. This will help ensure the integrity of the code that powers what Americans see on our app. We will further provide access to researchers, which helps them study and monitor our content ecosystem. Now, we believe we are the only company that offers this level of transparency.
Now, trust is about actions we take. We have to earn their trust with decisions we make for our company and our products. The potential security, privacy manipulation concerns raised about TikTok are really not unique to us. The same issues applied to other companies. We believe what’s needed are clear, transparent rules that apply broadly to all tech companies. Ownership is not at the core of addressing these concerns. Now, as I conclude, there are more than 150 million Americans who love our platform and we know we have a responsibility to protect them, which is why I’m making the following commitments to you and to all our users. Number one, we will keep safety particularly for teenagers as a top priority for us. Number two, we will firewall protected US data from unwanted foreign access. Number three, TikTok will remain a place for free expression and will not be manipulated by any government. And fourth, we will be transparent and give access to third party independent monitors to remain accountable for our commitments. I’ll be grateful for any feedback that you have, and I look forward to your questions. Thank you very much.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
As you know, the testimony that you’re about to give is subject to Title 18, Section Two, 1001 of the United States Code. As you stated in your testimony, ByteDance is TikTok’s parent company, is it accurate to say that you are in regular communication with the CEO of ByteDance, Liang Rubo?
Shou Chew:
Chair Rodgers, yes. I am in communication with him.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
Kelly Zhang is the CEO of ByteDance China overseeing Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. Are you in regular communication with Kelly?
Shou Chew:
I’m not in regular communication with her.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
The ByteDance editor-in-chief is Zhang Fuping, correct?
Shou Chew:
I believe so.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
And Wu Shugang is Beijing ByteDance Technology Board member and also an official of the Cyberspace administration in China. Is this correct?
Shou Chew:
I believe so. They are not in direct…
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
Thank you. All of these individuals work or affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party are at the highest levels of leadership at ByteDance, a company where you previously served as the Chief financial Officer and where you regularly communicate with their CEO, TikTok has told us that you weren’t sharing data with the CCP, but leaked audio from within TikTok has proven otherwise. Tiktok told us that you weren’t tracking the geolocation of American citizens. TikTok told us you weren’t spying on journalists. You were in your testimony. You state that ByteDance is not beholden to the CCP. Again, each of the individuals I listed are affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party, including Zong Fu Ping, who is reported to be the, the Communist Party’s Secretary of ByteDance and who is called for the party committee to quote, take the lead across all party lines to ensure the algorithm is enforced by quote, correct political direction.
Just this morning, the Wall Street Journal reported that the CCP is opposed to a forced sale of TikTok by ByteDance. Quoting a CCP spokesman saying the Chinese government would make a decision regarding any sale of TikTok. So the CCP believes they have the final say over your company. I have zero confidence in your assertion that ByteDance and TikTok are not beholden to the CCP. Next question. Heating content is a way of promoting and moderating content. In your current or previous positions within Chinese companies, have employees engaged in heating content for users outside of China? Very quickly, yes or no.
Shou Chew:
Our heating process is approved by our local teams in the various countries.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
The answer is yes. Thank you. Have any moderation tools been used to remove content on TikTok associated with the Uyghur genocide? Yes or no?
Shou Chew:
We do not remove that kind of content. Tiktok is a place for freedom of expression and cherish. Just like I said, if you use our app, you can go on it. Then you will see a lot of users around the world thank expressing content. Thank you in on that topic and many others. Thank you.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
What about the massacre in Tiananmen Square? Yes or no?
Shou Chew:
I’m sorry. I didn’t hear the question.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
The massacre in Tiananmen Square,
Shou Chew:
That kind of content is available on our platform. You can go and search it.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
I will remind you that making false or misleading statements to Congress is a federal crime.
Shou Chew:
I understand. Again, you can go on our platform. You will find that content.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
Okay. Thank you. Reclaiming my time. Can you say with 100% certainty, that ByteDance, the CCP cannot use your company or its divisions making content to promote pro CCP messages for an act of aggression against Taiwan?
Shou Chew:
We do not promote or remove content at the request of the Chinese government.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
The question is, are you 100% certain that they cannot use your company to promote such messages?
Shou Chew:
It is our commitment to this committee and all our users that we will keep this free from any manipulation by any government.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
If you can’t say 100% certain, I take that as a no. As I previously referenced TikTok Spy on American Journalists. Can you say with 100% certainty that neither ByteDance nor TikTok employees can target other Americans with similar surveillance techniques?
Shou Chew:
Chair Rodgers, I first of all disagree with the characterization that is spying. It was an internal investigation on yes or
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers:
No. Can you do surveillance of other Americans?
Shou Chew:
We will protect the US user data and fire it all from all awan foreign access. It’s a commitment that we’ve given to the committee.
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