The Economist.
On this vote, the Ayes are 352, the Nays are 65.
The bill is passed, and without the objection, the motion.
On March 13th, America's House of Representatives passed the bill demanding that TikTok,
the enormously popular social media app, cut its ties with China, or else risk being banned in America.
Although TikTok is based in Los Angeles and Singapore,
it is a subsidiary of ByteDance, a Chinese tech giant, and that worries American politicians.
TikTok is a threat to our national security because it is owned by ByteDance,
which does the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party.
TikTok said its data is not accessible to China-based ByteDance employees. False.
TikTok has been fighting back, insisting that the app is safe from state manipulation.
China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently denounced the bill,
saying America was resorting to hegemonic moves when it could not succeed in fair competition.
I'm Alice Su, the Economist senior China correspondent, and I'm here with my co-host, David Rennie, our Beijing Bureau Chief.
This week, we're asking, does Chinese ownership of TikTok really pose a threat to America?
This is Drum Tower from The Economist.
David, good to see you.
How have you been?
I'm good. I've just returned from a reporting trip in Tokyo,
and sadly missed the cherry blossom season there, but I'm back in warm Taipei and happy to be back.