TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testified before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which also marks his first major introduction to the public.
(Photo : by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images. )
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 23: TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew prepares to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on March 23, 2023 in Washington, DC.
Political representatives accused him of helping in a Chinese plot to undercut American power and corrupt the nation's youth. Most of the time, he was interrupted before he could finish his response. When he was allowed to speak, he dodged some of the tougher questions or declined to answer.
Below are some of the craziest things that happened during the hearing.
A TikTok Threatening the House Energy and Commerce Committee
Florida Rep. Kat Cammack shared a TikTok video that showed a gun being loaded with the caption "me as f at the House Energy and Commerce Committee on March 23." According to Cammack, the video clearly threatened the committee members.
Cammack said, "You expect us to believe that you are capable of maintaining the data security, privacy, and security of 150 million Americans where you can't even protect the people in this room?"
Later on, TikTok confirmed that they had taken down the video from the app during the hearing.
"Can TikTok Access a Home WiFi Network?"
Rep. Richard Hudson, a North Carolina Republican, also asked Mr. Chew if TikTok could access the home WiFi network. Chew had a very confused look on his face and answered in a way how WiFi works-when it is turned on, and TikTok can access the network to get connections to the internet.
Also read: TikTok CEO Claims Children Below 13 have Restrictive Content, Promotes Family Pairing
Uyghur Muslims
The lawmakers also asked Chew about his personal opinions about China and Chinese government policies that made the TikTok CEO uncomfortable. He also refused to answer their questions about the Chinese government's persecution of its Uyghur Muslim minority.
Legal Action Against the CEO
In one part of the questioning, Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers asked Chew whether the platform removed content related to the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. Chew said that it was available on the platform and Rodgers warned the CEO that lying under oath is a federal crime.
Selling Data: A maybe?
Chew was also pressed with questions about selling user data that TikTok collects. However, Chew made it clear that he was in support of some rules and even mentioned that he would get back to them with the details about what they do with the data that they gathered from TikTok users.
Congress Members Being Nice to Each Other
One of the surprising things about the hearing is that the Congress members were nice to each other, as beating up on big tech is one of the only things Republicans and Democrats agree on.
Related article: TikTok to Delete US User Data From Servers as Part of Project Texas
