NOOOOO! My family and thousands of other Hong Kong users, mostly youngsters, have just been banned from the lipsync/ dance/ music app TikTok as its US boss desperately tried to prove its anti-Chinese credentials.
The ploy failed. Donald Trump is stealing the company anyway.
Make no mistake: This is a tale of creative free-market capitalists being stomped on by lawless authoritarians. In this case, the free-market capitalists are Chinese, while the lawless authoritarians are Donald Trump and his henchmen.
And that’s not Beijing talking. What the US is doing to TikTok is “economic gangsterism” said economist John Ross. Alan McLeod described it as “modern international piracy on a massive scale”. Others have said the same.
It’s a shame. China’s app was great at breaking barriers, featuring young and old, Westerners and Easterners, and diverse people of all backgrounds.
Check out the video (sound on) for 4.5 mins of gloriously creative silliness.
Bye-bye, TikTok community, we had SO MUCH FUN!
Nury Vittachi is a Hong Kong-based journalist and author, who gained fame through his witty comedy-news writing. He deviates from the conventional “journalistic” style and uses creativity to expand the meaning of journalism. His work does not just make you laugh, but reflect.
This story was first published on Nury Vittachi’s Facebook.
