Inside Story

Why does Donald Trump want to ban TikTok?

After Huwaei, the US president is taking aim at another Chinese-owned company, citing security concerns.

The Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok has millions of users in the US. But many feel disappointed by President Donald Trump’s threats to ban it in the country.

Washington says it is worried users’ data could be shared with the Chinese government and that videos could be censored, but TikTok has rejected that.

Tech giant Microsoft says it will continue talks to buy Tiktok’s operations in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The corporation says it has spoken to Trump and will tackle his concerns about the social media platform. 

How far will Trump go in his business war against China?

Presenter: Hashem Ahelbarra 

Guests

Victor Gao – Vice president at the Center for China and Globalisation

Megha Mishra – Researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute

Elliott Zaagman – Co-host of the China Tech Investor podcast