MIchael Schuman
Why America Is Afraid of TikTok
The company’s founder says in an interview that he wants it to be “a window” on the world. A Republican senator says it is a “Trojan horse.”
The Atlantic, 2020
Aperçu
The United States’ policy decisions regarding TikTok raise ethical and political issues.
Recommendation
A Generation Z video app that showcases fun, self-made videos could trigger a reckoning regarding the United States’ goals and ideals. TikTok’s founder and its application are under fire because the company – not the app itself – operates from China. TikTok foreshadows what China seeks (world technical leadership) and what the United States dreads (loss of technical supremacy). Michael Schuman details in The Atlantic how the superpowers’ tussle over TikTok will reverberate for both nations.
Summary
About the Author
Michael Schuman is the author of two books on Asia, Superpower Interrupted: The Chinese History of the World and The Miracle: The Epic Story of Asia’s Quest for Wealth.
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