Some of TikTok’s most enthusastic users have been sending threatening messages to lawmakers demanding they save the Chinese spy app.
According to U.S. Capitol Police, lawmakers are receiving an “uptick” in reports of “threats and concerning messages” from users of the app unhappy at the prospect of legislation that would ban the app from operating in the U.S. unless its parent company agrees to divest.
The Washington Post reported:
The exact abundance of such calls is unclear, but one Senate aide said their office has received roughly a dozen violent threats since TikTok began urging users to contact members of the chamber, while a House aide said their office has received multiple calls from people suggesting they will commit self-harm if Congress passes legislation targeting the app. Both spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the nature of the outreach.
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The law enforcement official said that the threatening calls appeared to be coming from a broad cross-section of people, not only younger users, as some officials have suggested. The rise in such concerning messages has been observed across both the House and the Senate, they said.
Among those to receive a threat include North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, who recently released audio of what appeared to be a young person threatening to shoot him.
“TikTok’s misinformation campaign is pushing people to call their members of Congress, and callers like this who communicate threats against elected officials could be committing a federal crime,” Tillis wrote. “The Communist-Chinese aligned company is proving just how dangerous their current ownership is. Great work, TikTok.”
This is a voicemail my office received last night. TikTok’s misinformation campaign is pushing people to call their members of Congress, and callers like this who communicate threats against elected officials could be committing a federal crime. The Communist-Chinese aligned… pic.twitter.com/X9uW03neqw
— Senator Thom Tillis (@SenThomTillis) March 20, 2024
“Threats like this are unacceptable and we condemn this in the strongest possible terms,” TikTok spokesman Alex Haurek said in a statement. “Clearly, there are millions of Americans who want to and have the right to speak out against the ban bill that would trample Americans’ constitutional rights of free expression, but we must all do so in a respectful, civil manner.”
Although those behind the proposed legislation insist that it does not constitute a ban, ByteDance has already made it clear that it will not divest under any circumstances. TikTok has also made it clear that the bill represents an “outright ban of TikTok, no matter how much the authors try to disguise it,” and urged its users to pressure lawmakers into voting against it.
Our statement on the latest TikTok legislation: This bill is an outright ban of TikTok, no matter how much the authors try to disguise it. This legislation will trample the First Amendment rights of 170 million Americans and deprive 5 million small businesses of a platform they…
— TikTok Policy (@TikTokPolicy) March 5, 2024
While the legislation appears to have bipartisan support, some have also expressed skepticism. Among those are Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), both of whom have argued that the legislation could be used for ulterior purposes such as giving Joe Biden the authority to ban other apps without Congressional approval.
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