California Governor Gavin Newsom Initiates Formal Review of TikTok's Content Practices
California Governor Gavin Newsom has formally accused the social media platform TikTok of actively suppressing content that is critical of former President Donald Trump. The governor's office announced on Monday that it is launching a comprehensive review of the platform's content moderation systems and practices to determine whether they have violated any state laws in California.
Allegations of Systematic Content Suppression
"Following TikTok's recent sale to a business group aligned with Donald Trump, our office has received multiple reports, and we have independently confirmed specific instances, of suppressed content that is critical of President Trump," stated an official communication from Newsom's office posted on the social media platform X. The announcement did not provide further detailed elaboration on the nature or volume of the suppressed material.
"Governor Newsom is now launching a formal review of this conduct and is calling upon the California Department of Justice to investigate and determine whether these actions constitute a violation of California law," the statement added, signalling a significant escalation in the state's scrutiny of the popular video-sharing application.
TikTok's Response: Technical Glitches, Not Censorship
In a swift response, a representative for the newly established US joint venture operating TikTok pointed to a prior technical statement. The company firmly attributed the reported issues to a significant data centre power outage that occurred recently, stating, "It would be inaccurate to report that this is anything other than the technical issues we have transparently confirmed."
The joint venture explained that users may have experienced various bugs, slower load times, or timed-out requests when attempting to post new content as a direct result of the outage's impact. "While the primary network has been recovered, the initial outage precipitated a cascading systems failure that our engineering teams have been working diligently to resolve," the company said in its online statement, which was posted prior to Governor Newsom's public accusations.
Broader Context of User Distrust and Political Tensions
The allegations from the Democratic governor emerge against a backdrop of longstanding political friction between Newsom and the Republican former president. The accusation also coincides with numerous TikTok users reporting unusual platform abnormalities and voicing suspicions that their posts were being subjected to censorship.
Notable instances include Steve Vladeck, a professor at Georgetown University Law School, who reported that a video he recorded concerning reports about federal immigration officers potentially using sweeping powers to enter homes without judicial warrants had been placed "under review" by the platform.
Furthermore, Casey Fiesler, an expert in technology ethics and internet law at the University of Colorado, told CNN that "it is not surprising that there's a significant lack of trust" in TikTok's new ownership structure. She recounted experiencing problems herself when attempting to upload videos that alluded to immigration enforcement actions in Minneapolis.
The Recent TikTok Ownership Deal and Its Implications
This controversy follows last week's milestone agreement by TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance. The deal finalises the creation of a majority US-owned joint venture, named TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, designed to secure US user data through enhanced privacy and cybersecurity measures—a move explicitly praised by Donald Trump.
The agreement, which aims to avert a potential US ban on the app used by over 200 million Americans, stipulates that American and global investors will hold 80.1% of the venture, while ByteDance retains a 19.9% stake. Three managing investors—cloud computing giant Oracle, private equity group Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi-based investment firm MGX—will each hold a 15% share.
A White House official confirmed that both the US and Chinese governments have formally signed off on the arrangement. Donald Trump, who boasts more than 16 million followers on his personal TikTok account, has publicly credited the platform with assisting his victory in the 2024 presidential election.
