Ukraine invasion: China’s TikTok does a delicate dance to keep Brussels, Moscow and Beijing happy
- TikTok has not faced a ban in Russia, but incurred the wrath of Moscow by blocking the account of state news outlet RIA Novosti just days before the invasion
- While the short video app has positioned itself as an apolitical platform for people to share fun clips, it has been caught in geopolitical controversies before
TikTok, the short-video app popular for showing off new dance moves, is now performing a delicate balancing act itself to comply with varying requirements from Brussels, Moscow and Beijing over content related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, highlighting the challenges of operating a global platform in a divisive world.
In the European Union, TikTok has joined Western social media platforms Facebook, Google and Twitter in blocking Russian state media to curb Russian misinformation campaigns.
On Wednesday, TikTok confirmed to the Post that users in the EU cannot access Russia Today (RT), a Kremlin-controlled broadcaster, and Sputnik, a news outlet targeting international readers, after the EU’s ban on Russian state media.
TikTok has not faced a ban in Russia, but it incurred the wrath of the government by blocking the account of state news outlet RIA Novosti just days before the invasion of Ukraine, removing a video that was posted showing the local leader of a Ukrainian separatist region calling for evacuation. A day later, TikTok restored the account under pressure from Moscow.
Roskomnadzor, Russia’s communications regulator, on Monday also demanded TikTok stop recommending military-related content to minors, a move that some read as an attempt by Moscow to censor what is happening in Ukraine.