White House says TikTok’s warning that it will go dark on Sunday is a ‘stunt’
The White House has warned TikTok will be shut down in the US on Sunday unless tech companies get assurances they will not be punished for violating laws banning the app, calling it a “stunt.” ” Is.
Late Friday night, the social media platform said it needed a commitment from the outgoing Biden administration that companies like Apple and Google would not face prosecution for ignoring the impending ban.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “This is a stunt, and we see no reason for TikTok or other companies to take action in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office on Monday.”
US President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday that he was ‘probably’ likely to give TikTok a 90-day exemption from the ban.
TikTok said it would be forced to “go dark” in the US on Sunday because the White House and Justice Department “failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurances to service providers who are integral to maintaining the availability of TikTok.” “.
But the White House press secretary said Saturday: “We have made our position clear and simple: It will be up to the next administration to take action to enforce this law. So TikTok and other companies need to address any concerns they may have.” Needed.”
It follows a Supreme Court decision on Friday morning that upheld a law banning the app in the US unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, sells the platform by Sunday.
ByteDance has repeatedly said it will not seek a buyer for the platform.
In an interview with NBC News on Saturday, Trump said: “A 90-day extension is something that is most likely to happen, because it makes sense.
“If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday.”
The president-elect said on Friday that he had just spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping and discussed TikTok among other issues.
TikTok CEO Shaw Zi Chew is expected to be among the tech executives at Trump’s inauguration on Monday.
US national security officials have warned that Chinese spies could use the app’s data harvesting to track US federal employees and contractors, a charge TikTok has denied.
Yet the platform remains extremely popular among its 170 million users in the US, some of whom are lobbying members of Congress against a ban. It has also been a valuable tool for American political campaigns to reach young voters.
Trump previously supported a ban on TikTok, but has recently claimed a “warm spot” for the app, saying his videos on the platform were viewed billions of times during last year’s presidential campaign. .
Under the law passed last April, the US version of the app will be removed from app stores and web-hosting services in the coming days.
Content creators who rely on the app for revenue told the BBC that if it were to shut down in the US, their lives would be drastically changed without the platform.
“Indirectly, the bulk of my income was from TikTok because all the brands want their stuff promoted on the app,” Nicole Bloomgarden, a fashion designer and artist who uses TikTok, told the BBC.
