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China’s Meltdown Over TikTok Ban Tells You All You Need to Know
China would rather lose TikTok’s revenues than lose control over Americans.
By Daniel Greenfield
The pro-TikTok lobby within the conservative movement (I debated one of them) has kept insisting that the Chinese corporation exists separately from the regime and has nothing to do with it.
That ambiguity collapsed the moment the House bill passed.
Beijing is in full “Wolf Warrior” mode now. It described Congress as “bandits”, accused America of opposing “free speech”, cited the ACLU (ironically created by a Communist ally to support Communism), accused America of “bullying” and warned that this “will eventually backfire on the US itself”.
As many have pointed out, China has banned every American social media app. American companies routinely have to take on Chinese partners and are eventually squeezed out. If not, their IP is stolen and used to crank out copycat products or software.
The PRC doesn’t have a single leg to stand on.
But that’s not the point. What is the point is that Beijing is so furious because it values TikTok as an agent of influence inside America.
This isn’t about money. While TikTok is massively popular, its revenue is a drop in China’s economy. A sale would provide an immediate cash flow that China would profit from. Instead, the PRC is warning that it will block any sale leading to an actual suspension of TikTok in America.
China would rather lose TikTok’s revenues than lose control over Americans.
Why does Beijing care so much about one company’s presence in one market? Because it wants to use TikTok to manipulate and spy on Americans.