The potential political fallout for a TikTok ban is difficult to predict. “Lawmakers in Washington debating TikTok should hear firsthand from people whose lives would be directly affected by their decisions.” “TikTok creators are small business owners trying to make a living and put food on their tables, teachers educating the next generation of leaders, and everyday innovators who represent the breadth of America,” TikTok spokesperson Jamal Brown said in a statement. The lobbying effort, first reported by The Information, will primarily showcase an economic argument: that banning TikTok could bring financial hardship to Americans who rely on it to help generate income.

His first appearance before Congress will mark TikTok’s most high-profile showdown with lawmakers to date - and the app plans to lean on users, deemed “creators,” to counter efforts to ban it as well as criticism that it’s a national security threat. Biden now supports a bipartisan bill that could do just that, and his administration recently told TikTok that either its Chinese owners sell their stakes in the company or the app could face a U.S. The Justice Department and the FBI are currently investigating TikTok and ByteDance, including allegations that company employees spied on journalists.Ĭhew’s testimony comes as efforts in Washington to potentially ban TikTok in the U.S. In December, President Joe Biden signed a spending bill that banned TikTok from U.S. public opinion or gain access to Americans’ data for nefarious purposes, such as spying. Lawmakers from both parties, and the White House, argue that TikTok, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, poses a threat to national security because Beijing could use it to influence U.S. over the nearly three years that Washington - under two presidential administrations - has grappled with how to rein it in. suggests the app has become even more entrenched in the U.S. That 50% jump in the number of monthly active users in the U.S. But when Chew testifies before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, he will say that number has now reached 150 million, according to a senior Democratic strategist advising TikTok. TikTok currently says about 100 million people in the U.S. When TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testifies before Congress on Thursday, he plans to unveil new internal data that suggests the popular video-sharing app is far more enmeshed in Americans' daily lives than anyone realizes.

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