"We're going to look at TikTok, maybe we will ban TikTok" Donald Trump's announcement made American TikTokers jump on Friday. While relations between China and the United States are extremely tense, the American president accuses the application, owned by the Chinese group ByteDance, of using TikTok as a spy service.
For Marie-Cécile Naves, political scientist and research director at IRIS, the rivalry between the United States and China is the main reason for this announcement, but it is not the only one. “I think Trump doesn't quite understand what TikTok is. What undoubtedly disturbs him is that it is rather a multicultural, cosmopolitan youth committed against him who seems to use it for political ends, ”she analyzes.
In mid-June, TikTokers claimed responsibility for sabotaging Donald Trump's meeting in Tulsa, which was to relaunch his campaign. The latter had reserved tickets by ten without going to the political event. If the impact of their initiative is difficult to assess, Donald Trump addressed a particularly sparse audience.