 TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testifies at the US House hearing on March 23, 2023. (Photo: Getty Images) |
CEO Shou Zi Chew's testimony before Congress did little to assuage US worries over TikTok's China-based parent company ByteDance and added fresh momentum to lawmakers' calls to ban the platform nationwide.
Over five hours of testimony, Chew repeatedly denied the app shares data or has connections with the Chinese Government and argued the platform was doing everything to ensure safety for its 150 million American users.
“The bottom line is this: American data stored on American soil, by an American company, overseen by American personnel," Chew said.
But not a single lawmaker offered support for TikTok, as they deemed Chew's answers on China evasive and aired concerns over the power the app holds over US children.
Others accused TikTok of promoting content that encourages eating disorders among children, illegal drug sales and sexual exploitation.