TikTok To US Govt: 'We Don't Answer To Beijing'

TikTok, a social media video app, has answered the allegations of content censorship from the U.S. government.

In a statement released on Thursday, the video platform  — developed by China-based IT Company ByteDance — said that it does not remove content based on sensitivities related to China. 

"We have never been asked by the Chinese government to remove any content and we would not do so if asked. Period,” it said.

What Happened

TikTok has come under intense scrutiny in the U.S. as tensions remain high between the country and China over trade relations. 

In a letter written to the director of national intelligence on Wednesday, New York Senator Chuck Schumer and Arizona Senator Tom Cotton asked to investigate TikTok as a national threat. 

"With over 110 million downloads in the U.S. alone, TikTok is a potential counterintelligence threat we cannot ignore,” the letter said, according to Forbes.

Florida senator Marco Rubio made a similar request to the treasury secretary earlier this month.

"Ample [and] growing evidence exists that TikTok’s platform for western markets, including the U.S., are censoring content in line with [China’s] communist government directives,” Rubio said in a tweet. The Senator did not specify to what evidence he was referring.

TikTok’s Response

TikTok has rejected the allegations stating that it is “not influenced by any foreign government, including the Chinese government.”

"We store all TikTok U.S. user data in the United States, with backup redundancy in Singapore. Our data centers are located entirely outside of China, and none of our data is subject to Chinese law,” the company said.

"Our US moderation team, which is led out of California, reviews content for adherence to our U.S. policies – just like other U.S. companies in our space. We are not influenced by any foreign government, including the Chinese government,” it added.