Biden’s TikTok Ban Support May Turn Off Young Voters

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President Joe Biden’s campaign could face backlash from younger voters over his support for a bill that could lead to a ban of TikTok, particularly after saying he’d sign the legislation about a month after the campaign joined the social media platform.

“I think it’s going to be a very fine line they’re going to have to walk,” Annie Wu Henry, a 28-year-old digital strategist for the campaign of Pennsylvania Democrat Sen. John Fetterman, told The Hill. “Someone might think, ‘You know, as long as it’s there, it’s fine that they’re using it.’ But some people might find it hypocritical.”

The bill, passed in the House by a 352-65 bipartisan vote, is now in the hands of the Senate. It aims at forcing TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to sell the app to non-Chinese owners within the next six months. TikTok would face a ban in the United States if the sale does not happen.

TikTok has become increasingly popular in the United States and has become the place where more younger Americans are getting their news in addition to videos, according to a Pew Research poll that showed about one-third of adults younger than 30 saying they get their news from the app.

According to Henry, TikTok has a sense of “community, intimacy, and authenticity” including in its comment section, where reply videos can receive even more views than the original postings.

“That is why it’s used in different ways than some of the other social media platforms,” she said. “There is the ability for the campaign to really show that they’re listening and hearing and having that rapport with the public and what they’re saying, and what their feedback is around all types of issues, including TikTok.”

TikTok has been pushing back on allegations that the site poses national security risks to the United States while it is under Chinese rule.

Shoshana Weissmann, director of digital media at the R Street Institute, called the Biden campaign’s use of the app “super hypocritical” and said it “undermines his case” about the bill and claims of security risks.

Campaign officials told the Associated Press in February that advanced security precautions were being undertaken, but did not specify the measures.

Antonio Arellano, vice president of communications at NextGen America, however, dismissed concerns that younger voters could rebel against Biden, telling The Hill that they have “bigger fish to fry” including climate change, reproductive justice, and gun violence.

He also called the Republican Party “hypocritical” while moving quickly on a TikTok ban but not other issues such as immigration and gun reform.

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