Discussion

• @samaugustdean @samaugustdean on x

  Video game companies owned by Tencent will NOT be affected by this executive order! White House official confirmed to the LA Times that the EO only blocks transactions related to WeChat So Riot Games (League of Legends), Epic Games (Fortnite), et al are safe (pending updates)

• @hunterw Hunter Walker on x

  BREAKING: President Trump just issued an executive order “on Addressing the Threat Posed by TikTok.” It takes effect in 45 days, prohibits “any transaction” with ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, and will almost certainly face legal challenges. https://twitter.com/…

• @paulmozur @paulmozur on x

  WeChat is now in play as the Trump admin looks to break a 20-year custom of mostly ignoring Chinese internet blocks. The executive order lays the groundwork for an eye-for-eye reprisal aimed at what is China's most groundbreaking internet product. https://www.nytimes.com/...

• @hawleymo Josh Hawley on x

  Just passed my bill banning @tiktok_us on government devices on the Senate floor. Unanimous

• @tculpan Tim Culpan on x

  Tencent responds to ⁦@POTUS⁩ executive order. In summary: “we're looking into it” https://twitter.com/...

• @alexdobie Alex Dobie on x

  This is absolutely wild. While WH has clarified it's only going after WeChat + not all of Tencent, that still means WeChat being pulled from Google Play & App Store in 45 days. MUCH bigger deal on iOS vs Android given the lack of sideload options (thread) https://www.androidcentr…

• @nukestrat Hans Kristensen on x

  .@FareedZakaria on the effects of Trump's Internet control efforts: “Instead of China adopting the U.S. model, the United States is adopting the Chinese model.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...

• @noahpinion Noah Smith on x

  Look, kids. I'm all in favor of Cold War Liberalism — pointing the finger at totalitarian rivals and say “We can't let ourselves be like that”. But that's very different than saying “We also do some bad things, so we have no right to point fingers.” That's just edgelord-ism. http…

• @evleaks Evan Blass on x

  With the US's increasingly aggressive posture toward numerous crown jewels of China's tech sector, how long before China starts taking painful retaliatory action? Apple, for instance - with its heavy reliance on both Chinese labor and consumers - would seem especially vulnerable.

• @halhod @halhod on x

  @alexhern don't think this is the case, as the app is different in mainland, and not called wechat. it's chinese name weixin isn't in the order

• @gerryconway Gerry Conway on x

  It's entirely possible there's a good case to be made for the U.S. to disengage somewhat from Chinese tech. This is not that case. It's stupid political race-baiting. “Trump's WeChat ban could touch everything from Spotify to League of Legends” https://www.theverge.com/...

• @whnsc NSC on x

  WeChat is subject to the authority of the #CCP, which actively undermines U.S. interests and is hostile to American values and the rights of individuals. https://www.whitehouse.gov/...

• @thesharpedge1 @thesharpedge1 on x

  POTUS issued an executive order Thursday night banning China's TikTok owned by ByteDance in 45 days on the basis that the app has been gathering data that could potentially be shared with the government of China. https://www.google.com/... https://www.whitehouse.gov/...

• @whnsc NSC on x

  TikTok has a history of censoring free speech to conform to #CCP propaganda and captures information from users in the U.S. and around the world. The Trump Administration will not allow the CCP to exploit the private information of U.S. citizens. https://www.whitehouse.gov/...

• @sarahjeong Sarah Jeong on x

  because I exist to make people mad, I decided to make my tech column about authoritarianism, racism, and american exceptionalism https://www.theverge.com/...

• @sriramk Sriram Krishnan on x

  Many takes on China/US but this is a fair summary : this was something bubbling over for a long time and the status quo was unstable. https://twitter.com/...

• @nytimes @nytimes on x

  By targeting the all-purpose Chinese app WeChat, President Trump's executive order restricting Chinese tech would curb Beijing's ability to spread propaganda, but also cut off conversations between investors, business partners, family and friends. https://www.nytimes.com/...

• @nytimesbusiness @nytimesbusiness on x

  “Trump is violating our rights to connect with our families and friends. If WeChat is really banned, the executive order seems rather unconstitutional, it violates the First Amendment,” said May Han, a Chinese American student in California https://www.nytimes.com/...

• @cnn @cnn on x

  President Trump issued executive orders that will ban TikTok from operating in the US in 45 days if they are not sold by their Chinese-owned parent companies. CNN's @Hadas_Gold looks back at the rise and controversies of the app. https://www.cnn.com/... https://twitter.com/...

• @danprimack Dan Primack on x

  Two notes on the @realDonaldTrump order: 1. It doesn't make sense. MSFT led to believe it had 45 days to strike a deal that was amenable to all sides (including WH). Almost impossible to believe it could now close deal in that timeframe — there is still tons to be negotiated.

• @oxforddiplomat Dr. Jennifer Cassidy on x

  Following India's lead, Trump issues an executive order banning TikTok if not sold within 45 days. This might be minor for some, but this is pretty huge for my area of Digital Diplomacy. Bringing up issues of cyber and national sovereignty, data control...https://www.axios.com/ .…

• @om @om on x

  Basically, Bytedance is saying that they are going to sue the administration? https://newsroom.tiktok.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...

• @hawleymo Josh Hawley on x

  Dear #China: Winter is coming https://twitter.com/...

• @jason_a_murdock Jason Murdock on x

  TikTok responds: “We will pursue all remedies available to us in order to ensure that the rule of law is not discarded and that our company and our users are treated fairly - if not by the Administration, then by the US courts.” https://newsroom.tiktok.com/ ...

• @reckless Nilay Patel on x

  Trump going after WeChat / Tencent is a lot different than going after TikTok — Tencent is an absolute force in gaming, movies, and music. @345triangle explains, in a story that started by just making a list. Top Gun! https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/...

• @baldingsworld @baldingsworld on x

  Amazing how ingrained CCP propaganda has become even in mainstream outlets that would deny it. Why is WeChat the only bridge? Because Beijing blocks everything else and censors WeChat. Why is everything about whether it upsets Beijing? Terrible framing https://www.nytimes.com/...

• @nbcnightlynews @nbcnightlynews on x

  In orders targeting TikTok and Tencent, Pres. Trump argues that the apps developed and owned by companies in China “threaten the national security, foreign policy, and economy of” of the US by making US citizens data vulnerable to Chinese Communist Party. https://www.nbcnews.com/…

• @reckless Nilay Patel on x

  Fire from ⁦@sarahjeong⁩ this morning https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/...

• @yuanfenyang Yuan Yang on x

  The best side-effect of the WeChat ban could be to get more Chinese diaspora onto @signalapp and other end-to-end encrypted apps. That would be a concrete step towards better security. BUT WAIT, the US govt is also defunding the creators of secure apps! https://www.theverge.com/.…

• @alexhern Alex Hern on x

  That would be substantially more damaging for Apple in China than losing Google services was for Huawei in the west, I think. And yet this is the US government doing it to both.

• @alexhern Alex Hern on x

  If I'm reading this EO correctly, it obliges Apple to remove WeChat from the Chinese App Store, which would effectively kill the company's phone business in China. China represents a little under 15% of Apple's global revenue https://www.whitehouse.gov/...

• @thetweetofjohn John FitzGerald on x

  The loophole that could render all the rest of this BS: “to the extent permitted under applicable law.” Why put that in? It's almost like saying, I don't even know if I can do this. https://www.whitehouse.gov/...

• @arielbogle Ariel Bogle on x

  Trump's executive order incorrectly claims WeChat is banned or restricted in Australia. It is not, or at least, not currently. https://www.whitehouse.gov/... https://twitter.com/...

• @katherineykwu Katherine Wu on x

  I have tears steaming down my face trying to figure out what the hell this means. WeChat is the only form of communication between me and my parents and grandparents- my entire family in China. It's always been so goddamn hard to be so far from them, and especially this year. htt…

• @sarthakgh Sar Haribhakti on x

  All true : 1) CCP started this war two decades ago 2) Trade reciprocity is a reasonable expectation 3) Algiorithmic & info control is a dangerous tool in hands of CCP given its track record 4) POTUS has been a whimsical bafoon in handling this situation & has a trust deficit http…

• @paulmozur @paulmozur on x

  Also...WeChat absolutely is a security issue. Chinese police widely use WeChat to intimidate the diaspora community and in China use it to follow/detain their families. The domestic censorship makes it an international filter bubble of CCP propaganda. https://www.nytimes.com/...

• @jgriffiths @jgriffiths on x

  “Arguments for a national ban against dishonest tech companies that harvest as much data as possible and backchannel with spy agencies and police hold up pretty well no matter which company is slotted into the national security mad libs.” https://theintercept.com/...

• @ruima @ruima on x

  So WeChat has something like 3mm users in the US mostly Chinese diaspora. Kindly do explain to me the threat.

• @mikeisaac Rat King on x

  tencent acknowledges the EO, but not much more for now: ""We are reviewing the executive order to get a full understanding." — Tencent spokesperson

• @mr_berman Matt Berman on x

  It's fun with news with Trump sometimes that you expect one thing, and then you get that one thing, but you also get a weird twist that you did not see coming, sorry to Fortnite. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/ ...

• @thr @thr on x

  “These risks are real,” reads Trump's order, which cites the International Emergency Economic Powers Act as its basis. “The United States must take aggressive action against the owners of TikTok to protect our national security” https://thr.cm/6euHhUW

• @goldman Jason Goldman on x

  Won't invoke the Defense Production Act to produce the PPE needed by doctors and nurses. Won't encourage a national mask mandate. Won't respond to Russia paying bounties to kill US soldiers. But this is the emergency. https://twitter.com/...

• @seldo Laurie Voss on x

  Is blocking financial transactions with TenCent also about national security or are we finally admitting the mask is off this blatant nationalism? https://www.theverge.com/...

• @soonergrunt @soonergrunt on x

  He doesn't actually have the authority to tell private citizens what to do here. He can order the executive branch to not engage in transactions. interesting that after all the gifts Facebook gives Trump and Republicans he did this today as FB launches their TikTok competitor. ht…

• @chandrarsrikant Chandra R. Srikanth on x

  Trump cites India's actions against Chinese apps in both his executive orders on WeChat and TikTok. Thee TikTok order even quotes @GoI_MeitY. Fact that US seems to be following India on how it regulates Chinese Internet cos is remarkable in itself. https://twitter.com/...

• @ericgarland Eric Garland on x

  India bans TikTok. Microsoft might buy TikTok. If it does...it wants to expand...into India. Can anyone explain this to me? 🤔https://www.ft.com/ ...

• @emilydparker Emily Parker on x

  The executive order is basically describing TIkTok and WeChat as a “national emergency” https://www.whitehouse.gov/...

• @meghupdates @meghupdates on x

  India showed the way .... Details of the order .... https://www.whitehouse.gov/...

• @annafifield Anna Fifield on x

  All the focus has been on TikTok because Americans use it. But for China, WeChat is a much much bigger deal. It's impossible to function in China without WeChat https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...

• @evan_greer Evan Greer on x

  “I am going to fight the Chinese Internet companies by making our Internet more like China's.” https://twitter.com/...

• @aynrandpaulryan Holly Figueroa O'Reilly on x

  What a man-baby. 😂 The tweens on TikTok really hurt his feelings when they punked him in Tulsa. Trump Targets WeChat and TikTok, in Sharp Escalation With China https://www.nytimes.com/...

• @jbursz Jessica Bursztynsky on x

  A WeChat ban would be devastating for so many people in China who have relatives/friends in the U.S. and vice versa I don't think some ppl understand how important and prevalent the app is for SO many people in their day-to-day lives, who just want to check-in across the world ht…

• @doctorjohn_md DoctorJohn on x

  WeChat is the only way I can communicate with my *entire* extended family. My mom, dad, and sister are my only family in the States. Oh also, TenCent has a significant financial stake in over a dozen major game publishers & developers. Trump's a fucking asshole https://twitter.co…

• @byyourlogic @byyourlogic on x

  Donald Trump despises the current Fortnite meta https://twitter.com/...

• @briannawu Brianna Wu on x

  Tencent owns League of Legends and PubG, meaning neither two of the biggest games on the market can't make money. Tencent also has a 40 percent stake in Unreal Engine, which makes Fortnite. This is so incredibly stupid. https://twitter.com/...

• @genepark @genepark on x

  Will this tiktok ban affect fortnite then?! Call of Duty mobile?! https://twitter.com/...

• @thetomzone @thetomzone on x

  this trump EO should not be taken seriously but if i'm reading this correctly, it bans any transaction with a business unit of Tencent within “the jurisdiction of the United States,” thus more or less banning any Tencent America games https://twitter.com/...

• @fordm Matt Ford on x

  Uh, Tencent has stakes in Activision Blizzard, Ubisoft, Supercell, and Epic Games. It owns Riot Games outright. That's a huge swath of the gaming industry. https://twitter.com/...

• @kalhanr Kalhan on x

  🗣CAN WE STOP WITH THE TIKTOK NEWS WHEN IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE MY WEEKEND https://twitter.com/...

• @panama_tj @panama_tj on x

  The end of Tik Tok in the US. https://twitter.com/...

• @josh_emerson Josh Russell on x

  This will die in court https://twitter.com/...

• @originalspin Jeff Yang on x

  Trump getting even with the TikTok kids who turned his Covid-infested Tulsa rally into a humiliation. What's next, a ban on BTS? Not sure Donnie wants to wake this dragon https://twitter.com/...

• @samfbiddle Sam Biddle on x

  the idea that the United States has any sort of moral authority when it comes to condemning China's internet is absolutely insane. There is nothing “clean” about us and there never has been https://theintercept.com/...

• @rmac18 @rmac18 on x

  Mark Zuckerberg was asked by employees today if Facebook would acquire TikTok. He said he wouldn't comment on M&A but said that a ban on TikTok would be “a really bad long-term precedent” and doubted that it would help Facebook in the long run. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/ ...

• @liuxininbeijing Liu Xin on x

  US intelligence agency's analysts told the White House, it is possible that the Chinese intelligence authorities could intercept data or use the app to bore into smartphones. But there is NO EVIDENCE they have done so. The future? I say, it's all guessing.https://www.nytimes.com/…

• @fernanmartinez Fernn Martinez on x

  #TikTok has a parenting problem, raising preteens and teenagers distracted by its viral videos can attest. But when the C.I.A. was asked recently to assess whether it was also a national security problem, the answer that came back was highly equivocal. https://www.nytimes.com/...

• @nytimes @nytimes on x

  White House Memo: “Sorting out the real threats from the imagined ones is as complex as the design of the internet. But the threat TikTok poses, intelligence officials say, pales to the one created by Huawei,” write @SangerNYT and @julianbarnes https://www.nytimes.com/...

• @pegobry Peg on x

  And since America's intelligence agencies have been declared infallible in November of 2016... https://twitter.com/...

• @lichtspektrum @lichtspektrum on x

  One way to look at how a TikTok lawsuit against US could go, and this is suggested by a lawyer acquaintance: defendant is definitely going to ask for the plaintiff's (incl. BD's) correspondence with the Chinese government to be made public, which BD can't really afford to... http…

• @starfire2258 Sean Hollister on x

  If you've never heard of Tencent or don't think about them much, this might be a good time to change that. They have their fingers in SO many pies — including the biggest mobile games and huge Hollywood blockbusters. The list in here is just the start: https://www.theverge.com/..…

• @lindatangusa Linda Tang on x

  “.For nearly a year, we have sought to engage with the US government in good faith to provide a constructive solution to the concerns that have been expressed."says TikTok. I remember Tiktok rejected testifying in congress https://www.cnbc.com/...

• @harrymccracken Harry McCracken on x

  I loved visiting Microsoft's Beijing lab in 2004. Given the locale, it had an amazingly Redmondian vibe to it, and they were doing some things with image-processing technology that seemed amazing at the time. https://www.ft.com/...

• @yuanfenyang Yuan Yang on x

  I started working on this story a year ago, and this is the right week to get it out. How Microsoft laid roots in China, and seeded its future tech leaders, including TikTok's Zhang Yiming. “The soft power of Microsoft in China is immense.” (thread) https://www.ft.com/...

• @swodinsky Shoshana Wodinsky on x

  the internet's economy is *specifically built* to cross international lines. banning “chinese apps” like tiktok or shifting their ownership won't do shit to keep our data “safe.” if anything, it'll make things worse i did my best to break down why: https://gizmodo.com/...