Communist party

• Inscribed with the word “world” in five languages, this artwork by international youth embodies hopes for a future enriched by intercultural dialogue.
• It serves as an opener to an international symposium on the concept of intercultural exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, a collaborative effort between China’s State Council Information Office, UNESCO, and the China’s National Commission for UNESCO, held on April 15 in Paris.
• View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240418269051/en/
  International Symposium on the Concept of Intercultural Exchanges and Mutual Learning (Photo: Business Wire)
  The symposium unfolded both inside and outside the venue with vibrant displays and rigorous discussions.
• Inside, experts and scholars discussed the theme of “Intercultural Dialogue and Mutual Learning: Shared Horizons”, and commended China’s significant contributions to these global exchanges.

• Addressing the opening ceremony of the 2024 Zhongguancun Forum, Vice-Premier Ding Xue­xiang said China is willing to work with the international community to practice the concept of open, fair, just and nondiscriminatory international sci-tech cooperation, and to jointly build a global sci-tech community.
• The country will explore a new model regarding mutually beneficial global cooperation in sci-tech innovation, and will break down barriers restricting the flow of knowledge, technology, talent and other innovative factors, to jointly create an open innovation ecosystem.
• China's strength in scientific and technological innovation has taken a major leap in recent years.
• Marco Aleman, assistant director-general of the World Intellectual Property Organization, said China is a powerhouse of innovation that contributes to global growth and sustainable development.

• The president can extend the deadline by three months, and TikTok has indicated that it plans to challenge the law in court.
• If the law stands and the company fails to sell the app, TikTok will be blocked from any U.S. app store or web-hosting service.
• The main arguments against TikTok under ByteDance’s ownership include that it enables foreign influence of U.S. public opinion, promotes harmful behaviors among minors, and undermines Americans’ data privacy.
• However, none of these concerns are new or unique to TikTok among social media platforms.

Foreign influence and propaganda

• Lawmakers have expressed concern that the Chinese government could influence U.S. public opinion, and thereby politics, by exerting control over what content TikTok users see.
• Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) referred to TikTok’s role in challenging ConocoPhillips’ Willow oil drilling project in Alaska as a possible Chinese influence operation meant to undermine U.S. energy dominance.
• But U.S-based social media platforms have been and continue to be exploited by a range of foreign governments, including China, and their proxies who use them to attempt to influence U.S. public opinion.
• These influence campaigns create and maintain coordinated cross-platform networks.

Hazardous to minors

• Some lawmakers also caution that TikTok feeds children content linked to dangerous behaviors, like eating disorders and self-harm.
• However, all social media may pose these threats.
• Currently, 41 U.S. states and the District of Columbia have filed lawsuits against Meta for the damage allegedly done to minors.

Data security and privacy

• Proponents of the TikTok sale-or-ban law also claim that the app constitutes an unacceptable threat to data privacy.
• Rep. Gallagher asserted that the Chinese government could use TikTok for espionage to “find Americans, exfiltrate data and track the location of journalists.” Yet, there is little reason to believe Americans’ data is safer with U.S.-based companies.
• Meta has had a wide range of data privacy scandals.
• Much of this data can be purchased, completely legally, from commercial data brokers, regardless of who owns it.

The need for regulation

• Each threat posed by TikTok has also been posed by U.S.-based social media for over a decade.
• I believe that lawmakers should take action to address harms caused by U.S. companies seeking profit as well as by foreign companies perpetrating espionage.
• To truly protect their constituents, lawmakers would need to enact broad, far-reaching regulation.

Sarah Florini currently receives research funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

• The U.S. government moved closer to banning the video social media app TikTok after the House of Representatives attached the measure to an emergency spending bill on Apr.
• The move could improve the bill’s chances in the Senate, and President Joe Biden has indicated that he will sign the bill if it reaches his desk.
• The bill would force ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, to either sell its American holdings to a U.S. company or face a ban in the country.
• For one, ByteDance can be required to assist the Chinese Communist Party in gathering intelligence, according to the Chinese National Intelligence Law.
• The fact that China, a country that Americans criticize for its authoritarian practices, bans social media platforms is hardly a reason for the U.S. to do the same.
• Here’s why I think the recent move against TikTok misses the larger point: Americans’ sources of information have declined in quality and the problem goes beyond any one social media platform.

The deeper problem

• But the proposed solution of switching to American ownership of the app ignores an even more fundamental threat.
• The deeper problem is not that the Chinese government can easily manipulate content on the app.
• It is, rather, that people think it is OK to get their news from social media in the first place.
• In other words, the real national security vulnerability is that people have acquiesced to informing themselves through social media.

Media and technology literacy

• Research suggests that it will only be alleviated by inculcating media and technology literacy habits from an early age.
• My colleagues and I have just launched a pilot program to boost digital media literacy with the Boston Mayor’s Youth Council.
• Some of these measures to boost media and technology literacy might not be popular among tech users and tech companies.

The Applied Ethics Center at UMass Boston receives funding from the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies. Nir Eisikovits serves as the data ethics advisor to Hour25AI, a startup dedicated to reducing digital distractions.