As clock ticks for TikTok in the US politicians weigh ban in Australia

Australia may have just taken a major step forward to banning TikTok, after the House of Representatives* in the US voted to pass a bill* that could see the app banned.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said she would closely watch the outcome of the bill introduced by the Republicans* calling on TikTok to cut ties with its Chinese owners or risk being banned from operating in the US.

“We are monitoring the progress of the bill in the US and will take additional action if and when relevant agencies advise it is appropriate to do so,” a spokesman for Ms O’Neil said on Wednesday.

“The Albanese government has taken strong action in line with advice from our agencies to restrict access to TikTok on devices used to handle sensitive information*.”

The legislation still has to pass the US Senate but President Joe Biden has said he is prepared to sign a bill into law if both houses of Congress give it the green light.

The Chinese government has already warned the US that any ban on TikTok would amount to “bullying” and would “come back to bite the United States itself”.

Back home, Opposition* national security spokesman James Paterson said prior to the American bill vote that Australia “cannot afford to be left behind” on the issue of national security, and that we should have the same protection as our American allies*.

“The Albanese government should be preparing legislation* today which will give Australians that same protection so that we can swiftly legislate it in concert* with our American allies,” he said.

“A failure to do so means allowing the Chinese government to directly influence the major source of news and information about the world for young Australians and unparalleled* opportunity for foreign interference in a dangerous world.”

Cybersecurity* expert Susan McLean also said before the vote that if the bill progresses in the US, Australia should follow suit*.

“These decisions and the people that are presenting to Congress* and the Pentagon* are whizzbang cybersecurity experts,” Ms McLean said. “If the American government believes that TikTok is of national security concern, then we as a friend of America should realise if it is a risk.

“If it’s a risk in one western country, then it’s a risk in another country.”

Ms McLean also said Australia would have to be mindful of its diplomatic* relations with China but national security must remain the priority.

“We are geographically closer to China and we have to be mindful of maintaining diplomatic relations but if push comes to shove*, if the company is acting in a way that risks national security, then that should be the priority,” she said.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• House of Representatives: one of the US Congress’s two chambers (the other is the Senate) and part of the federal government’s legislative branch
• bill: a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing one
• Republicans: one of the two major political parties in the US, the other being the Democratic Party
• sensitive information: matters of national security and/or a special subset of personal information which requires greater protection under the Privacy Act, including information that can trigger prejudice or bias
• Opposition: the party or group which has the greatest number of non-government Members in the House of Representatives
• allies: a country that supports and helps another country in a variety of ways
• in concert: working together, jointly, in agreement or mutual understanding
• unparalleled: unequalled, singular, unique, one of a kind
• cybersecurity: the work of protecting networks, devices and data from unauthorised access or criminal use
• follow suit: to do the same thing that someone else has just done
• Congress: the legislature, or lawmaking body, of the American parliamentary system, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives
• Pentagon: often used to refer to the US Department of Defense and its leadership, it also refers to the name of its headquarters
• diplomatic: maintaining good relations between the governments of different countries
• if push comes to shove: informal expression for when matters become critical or the moment when a decision must be made

EXTRA READING

TikTok biggest time-waster for kids

Time runs out for TikTok

Schools sue tech giants over social media harm

QUICK QUIZ

1. What did the US House of Representatives vote to do regarding TikTok?
2. The bill was introduced by the Republicans calling on TikTok to do what?
3. What warning has the Chinese government given to the US about TikTok?
4. What did Opposition national security spokesman James Paterson say the Albanese government should be doing?
5. Cybersecurity expert Susan McLean Australia had to be mindful of what?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Why would someone say this?
“TikTok should be banned, and not just because of its ties to China!”

What are the reasons why someone might say this? Write down as many reasons as you can think of.

Time: allow at least 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Digital Technologies, Civics and Citizenship, Personal and Social Capability

2. Extension
Do you know why there is tension between Western countries like the United States and Australia and China?

Brainstorm ideas, then use your research skills to find out more to add to your brainstorm points.

Time: allow at least 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, History

VCOP ACTIVITY
Proper noun police
A proper noun is a noun that names a particular person, place or thing. It always has a capital letter.

How many proper nouns can you find within this article? Find them all and sort them into the category of name, place, time (date/month).

Can you find any proper nouns included in your writing?

What are they?

Can you sort them into their categories?