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House votes to ban TikTok in the U.S. if it's not sold

pproves sell-or-be-banned TikTok measure, attaching it to foreign aid bill By Bobby Allyn Updated Saturday, April 20, 2024 • 2:19 PM EDT TikTok is now hurtling toward what is perhaps its biggest threat yet in the U.S. The House on Saturday passed legislation that could trigger a nationwide ban of TikTok if its Chinese owner does not sell the video app.

"It is unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of important foreign and humanitarian assistance to once again jam through a ban bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans," said TikTok spokesman Alex Haurek. National security officials in Washington have feared that the Chinese government could use TikTok to promote propaganda aimed at interfering in U.S. elections, or surveil some of the 170 million Americans who use the app every month. While there has been no evidence made public that Chinese government officials have accessed Americans' information through TikTok, the idea that China has the theoretical ability to weaponize an app used by half of America has been enough to set off an all-out crackdown.

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