(JustPatriots.com)- Despite the very real concerns about TikTok’s Chinese ownership, and the fact that U.S. intelligence officials have warned the app could be used for monitoring American citizens, it looks as though the video sharing platform is now on the list of the world’s most downloaded apps.
Great going, America.
Nikkei Asia revealed that TikTok has dethroned a number of Facebook-owned social media applications, moving from the fourth most downloaded social media app in 20219 to the most downloaded in 2020.
It makes sense, too. 2020 was the year people were told to stay at home because of a virus that came from China…which led to an app from China seeing a spike in downloads from people who needed new ways to stay entertained.
It almost seems too convenient…
Facebook apps, including Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram, all trail behind the app. Facebook Messenger was the most downloaded app in 2019, with Facebook coming second that year.
During the Trump administration, new measures were implemented to stop TikTok from spying on U.S. citizens. President Trump forced a buyout plan that would ensure that China did not run the operations in the United States. However, various policies put in place by the Trump administration to protect American citizens from China-owned apps were removed by the Joe Biden administration.
It means that ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, may eventually be able to leverage the fact that a huge proportion of Americans have downloaded the app to the benefit of the Chinese Communist Party. We just don’t know exactly how it will be done yet.
Many Republicans recognize the threat and continue to lobby Biden to do the right thing. Florida Senator Marco Rubio also wrote to American Airlines CEO Doug Parker this month to warn against a new plan of offering all passengers 30 minutes of free TikTok use while in the air – a plan that will likely expand TikTok’s reach across America.
