Recently the House of Representatives voted to ban TikTok in the United States stating national security as the primary concern, as China might be spying on Americans through the app.
The bill has been met with mixed reactions. Some people (read: politicians) are in favor of the ban, while others are arguing that it is a clear violation of the freedom of speech and press within the constitutional rights (the First Amendment).
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Congressman Thomas Massie stated that the bill is too broad and could be used to ban other social media platforms and websites besides TikTok. The bill was passed despite Massie's concerns. Some people and politicians are concerned that this could be a trojan horse to give the US government too much power to spy on Americans (which they already do).
Supporters of the ban argue that TikTok is a security risk and that the Chinese government could use the app to collect data on Americans. They also point out that TikTok has been accused of censoring content critical of China.
Key words: “could use the app to collect the data” - meaning there is no proof and “has been accused of censoring content” - again no proof, only accusations.
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The debate over the TikTok ban is likely to continue in the Senate. If the bill is passed by the Senate and signed into law by the President, it would be a significant development in the relationship between the United States and China.
It is very interesting to see the speed of the ban, which might suggest other motives besides national security. Take note of the invasion of illegal immigrants in the southern border of the US and the fact that nothing has been done about it for months. To find out more, check my previous post: @cryptodom151/the-us-is-being-invaded
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Edward Snowden alleges that the US government lies about mass surveillance, and we all know what happened during the 2020 presidential elections, as well as covid-19 pandemic. We have all witnessed what information was being censored on Facebook and Twitter, as well as Google and Youtube, to mention a few.
If the bill is passed and the US government bans TikTok, what does that mean for the future of other platforms?
Will they be able to censor or clamp down on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (now X) and eventually Hive? Keep in mind, the threat is not in the company, but the information shared and the algorithms used for this information to be more or less visible to other members of communities.
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Fortunately for us on Hive, given that we are using a decentralized network that stores all information. If they decide to shut down Ecency, we can use PeakD, LeoFinance, or one of many other websites that use Hive blockchain and access the data provided. So in the end it might be a game of whac-a-mole, and we might win this battle if we endure and if we are persistent.