Big Tech
Chinese Government Asked TikTok for Stealth Propaganda Account
- China asked for social account targeting Western audiences
- TikTok’s senior policy team pushed back on ‘sensitive’ request
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A Chinese government entity responsible for public relations attempted to open a stealth account on TikTok targeting Western audiences with propaganda, according to internal messages seen by Bloomberg.
The attempt, which met with push-back from TikTok executives, highlights the internal tensions within the fast-growing social media app, owned by Beijing-based ByteDance Inc., which has constantly attempted to distance itself from Chinese state influence.