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TikTok is fighting back against the Biden administration\u2019s new law forcing the sale or ban of the app, as they highlight the First Amendment in a new legal filing.<\/p>\n
The briefs, filed on Thursday<\/a> (June 20) by TikTok<\/a> and a group of eight creators, are one of the last attempts the company has to halt the ban from coming into place.<\/p>\n \u201cNever before has Congress expressly singled out and shut down a specific speech forum,\u201d they argue.<\/p>\n \u201cThe First Amendment requires this Court to examine such an extraordinary speech restriction with the utmost care and most exacting scrutiny.\u201d<\/p>\n For the first time, the text of a roughly 100-page draft agreement that the company offered to the government in August 2022 has been shared. This was proposed in the hopes of resolving its early worries.<\/p>\n The Biden administration declined the offer, saying it was insufficient to neutralize concerns.<\/p>\n TikTok\u2019s Chinese parent company, ByteDance<\/a> has split ownership.<\/p>\n The Chinese founders own 20% of the firm\u2019s shares. Around 60% is owned by institutional investors, including major US investment firms and its employees around the world own the remaining 20%. Three of ByteDance\u2019s five board members are American, the company says.<\/p>\n Thursday\u2019s move by TikTok<\/a> marks the latest in the ongoing case that could determine the future of the short-form video app that is used by 170 million Americans.<\/p>\n In the filings, the company states the Act doesn\u2019t just burden speech but it silences the millions of users too.<\/p>\n In the law signed by President Joe Biden in April, TikTok\u2019s Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance<\/a> was told they had to divest or be banned but they say divestiture isn\u2019t possible and especially not by the January 2025 deadline.<\/p>\n \u201cEven if divestiture were feasible, TikTok in the United States would still be reduced to a shell of its former self, stripped of the innovative and expressive technology that tailors content to each user.<\/p>\n \u201cIt also would become an island, preventing Americans from exchanging views with the global TikTok community.\u201d<\/p>\n Featured Image: Via Ideogram<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nWho owns ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok?<\/h2>\n
TikTok again highlights they don\u2019t believe divestiture is feasible<\/b><\/h2>\n