House approves TikTok ban

House members voted 352-65 to pass a bill that would charge heavy fines to U.S. app stores that distribute apps controlled by a foreign adversary. The bill would effectively ban the video-sharing app TikTok in the United States. The measure faces an uncertain future in the Senate. Former President Donald Trump told CNBC in an interview that he would not support the bill. The White House has confirmed that President Joe Biden will sign the measure if given the chance, despite the Biden campaign’s use of a TikTok account.

Why do members of Congress see TikTok as a threat? TikTok is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, pointed to examples of the app censoring journalists and targeting ethnic minorities. He expressed concern that TikTok is a popular source of news for younger Americans. “ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese Communist Party,” Gallagher said. “We have to ask ourselves whether it is prudent and wise to let America’s foremost adversary control the foremost news platform in America. I think it’s not.”

Dig deeper: Read John Schweiker Shelton’s column in WORLD Opinions on TikTok’s “double dystopia.”