Fact Check: Claims About U.S. Control Over TikTok Content Examined

False claims are circulating on social media that the U.S. government now controls what content Canadians see on TikTok, following a new law that could lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video-sharing app.

U.S. President Joe Biden signed legislation last month that gives TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, nine months to sell the platform or face a ban in the United States. The measure was included in a $95 billion foreign aid package that provides funding for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.

The law addresses longstanding concerns from U.S. officials that the Chinese government could potentially access American user data or manipulate content on the platform. These worries have intensified as TikTok has grown to more than 170 million users in the United States alone.

However, some Canadian users have misinterpreted what the legislation means for them. One widely shared TikTok video claims that “the United States government now controls what you see on TikTok” and that Americans can now “decide what appears on your feed.”

These assertions are inaccurate, according to cybersecurity and social media experts. The legislation does not grant the U.S. government any content moderation powers over TikTok, either in the United States or internationally.

“The law doesn’t give the U.S. government any control over TikTok’s algorithm or content,” said Emily Dreyfuss, a senior fellow at the Technology and Social Change Project at Harvard University’s Shorenstein Center. “It simply sets up a potential ban if ByteDance doesn’t divest from TikTok within the specified timeframe.”

ByteDance, which maintains that it operates independently of the Chinese government, has vowed to challenge the law in U.S. courts, arguing it violates free speech protections. The company has consistently denied sharing user data with Chinese authorities.

For Canadians, the legislation has no direct impact on how TikTok functions in their country. Canada has not enacted similar legislation, although the Canadian government did ban the app from government-issued devices in February 2023, following similar moves by the European Commission and several U.S. states.

“While the U.S. legislation could eventually affect TikTok’s global operations if a sale or ban occurs, it does not currently change how the platform’s algorithm functions for users in Canada or elsewhere,” said Christopher Parsons, a senior research associate at Citizen Lab, a digital rights research group at the University of Toronto.

The confusion stems partly from legitimate concerns about content moderation on social media platforms. TikTok, like other major platforms, uses complex algorithms to determine what content users see. These systems analyze user behavior, preferences, and engagement patterns to curate personalized feeds.

ByteDance has acknowledged that TikTok’s content moderation policies have evolved over time. In 2020, the company admitted that it had previously instructed moderators to suppress content from users deemed “unattractive” or “poor” in some regions, though it claimed these policies were no longer in effect.

The potential sale or ban of TikTok in the United States could have significant repercussions for the global digital economy. With more than a billion users worldwide, TikTok has become a crucial platform for businesses, creators, and advertisers. A forced divestiture would be one of the most significant government interventions in the technology sector in recent years.

Several potential buyers have reportedly expressed interest in acquiring TikTok’s U.S. operations, including Microsoft, which previously attempted to purchase the platform in 2020 before those talks collapsed.

The situation highlights the growing tensions between the United States and China over technology and data security. Similar concerns have led to restrictions on Chinese telecommunications companies like Huawei and ZTE in various Western markets.

For now, Canadian TikTok users can expect the app to continue functioning as it has been, with no changes to content moderation resulting from the U.S. legislation. Experts advise users to maintain healthy skepticism about claims regarding government control of social media and to seek information from reliable sources when navigating digital privacy concerns.