WASHINGTON: California Governor Gavin Newsom accused TikTok on Monday (Jan 26) of suppressing content material essential of President Donald Trump as he launched a assessment of the platform’s content material moderation practices to find out in the event that they violated state regulation.
The step comes after TikTok’s Chinese language proprietor, ByteDance, said it had finalised a deal to arrange a majority US-owned three way partnership that can safe US knowledge, to keep away from a US ban on the brief video app utilized by greater than 200 million People.
“Following TikTok’s sale to a Trump-aligned enterprise group, our workplace has obtained studies, and independently confirmed situations, of suppressed content material essential of President Trump,” Newsom’s workplace stated on X, with out elaborating.
“Gavin Newsom is launching a assessment of this conduct and is looking on the California Division of Justice to find out whether or not it violates California regulation,” it added.
The White Home and TikTok didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Newsom, a Democrat, and Trump, a Republican, have lengthy been essential of one another.
Final week’s TikTok deal was a milestone for the agency after years of battles with the US authorities over Washington’s issues about dangers to nationwide safety and privateness below Trump and former president Joe Biden.
ByteDance stated TikTok USDS Joint Enterprise LLC would safe US consumer knowledge, apps and algorithms by means of knowledge privateness and cybersecurity measures, in a deal praised by Trump.
With greater than 16 million followers on his private TikTok account, Trump credited the app with serving to him win the 2024 election.
The deal offers for American and world buyers to carry 80.1 per cent of the enterprise whereas ByteDance will personal 19.9 per cent.
Every of the three way partnership’s three managing buyers, cloud computing big Oracle, non-public fairness group Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi-based funding agency MGX, will maintain a stake of 15 per cent.
The US and Chinese language governments had signed off on the deal, a White Home official stated.
