The Political Crisis of TikTok

Author：Irene / time：2020-08-31 / The number of clicks：668

Thanks to the glorious era of fiber optic network created by the SFP Connector, people are able to entertain themselves by watching VCDs and DVDs after work or school or by using a variety of streaming services such as Line TV and Iqiyi which enable audiences to freely choose channels they want to watch. People can also download and upload data through the internet using self-media and even become Youtube content creators. Today, young people (born in the late 1990s) enjoy using the popular software TikTok in self-media platforms. 

TikTok is a Chinese software with "light, beautiful and positive" application features that people around the world can easily use by recording short videos of themselves. It is so popular worldwide that even many famous celebrities and singers are using this fun app. However, as TikTok continued to grow, it faced unexpected challenges: the trade war between China and the United States, and the border dispute between China and India.

Chinese film industries as well as users who want to create and publish short films through TikTok must comply with the 20 Categories of Censorship and Circumvention announced by the National Radio and Television Administration. Several provisions include: only positive recordings of society are acceptable; homosexual content is prohibited; maintain friendly outcomes and non-extreme romantic drama contents, etc. Despite the positive slogan (Make your day) and corporate vision of TikTok, the company has come under fire given the deteriorating relations between China and the U.S. since the beginning of the China-U.S. trade war in 2019 and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. With the cold war brewing between the two countries, the U.S. has shifted its target towards tech industries, identifying TikTok as a totalitarian-related platform. For Americans, or modern and mainstream society, they believe that all creations should be independent from power and ideological control. With the worsening China-U.S. trade war, the U.S. has re-evaluated all Chinese software and technology industries, taking action against any form of totalitarianism. Although TikTok has repeatedly claimed that it is not under Chinese government control, it has failed to convince the U.S. or other countries around the world.

Such accusation may be harsh to TikTok, but with the current political situation (i.e., the China-U.S. trade war and the China-India border dispute), the U.S., India and other allies have imposed sanctions against China, preventing the development of its technology industries, SFP Connector industry and application/entertainment software due to "information security". Although technology offers convenience and entertainment, it may also cause political struggle between countries or used as a tool for totalitarian control, and thus the issue taken into account by each country amid the struggle and trade sanctions.