VOA科学技术2024--Biden Campaign Defends Decision to Put President on TikTok

Biden Campaign Defends Decision to Put President on TikTok

　　U.S. President Joe Biden officially has a presence on TikTok. But his reelection campaign is having to defend its decision to put him on the video sharing app. That is because his administration has repeatedly warned of national security concerns linked to TikTok.

　　Biden, a Democrat¹, first appeared on TikTok in a video published Sunday night. The 30-second video showed him answering a series of questions, mostly about Sunday's Super Bowl.

　　U.S. officials have said the decision to put the president on TikTok came from Biden's campaign organization, not the White House. Campaign officials have explained that they see TikTok as a way for Biden, age 81, to connect with younger voters.

　　Last month, a TikTok representative told U.S. lawmakers the app currently had an estimated 170 million active users in the United States. That was up from 150 million a year earlier. Online data company Statista has estimated about 70 percent of American teenagers are users of TikTok.

　　U.S. officials have long warned that TikTok presents national security concerns. The government has accused TikTok's owner, Chinese company ByteDance, of sharing user data with China's government. Critics have said China could also use TikTok to spread misinformation and that material published on the service can harm the mental health of young users.

　　TikTok denies the accusations².

　　President Biden approved a limited ban on TikTok in December 2022. The ban made it unlawful for most of the federal government's 4 million employees to use the app on devices owned by agencies.

　　On Monday, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the U.S. government's position and policies concerning TikTok had not changed. "There are still national security concerns about the use of TikTok on government devices and there's been no change to our policy not to allow that," Kirby said.

　　White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters election rules barred her from commenting on campaign matters. But when asked about worries that TikTok and similar apps can help spread disinformation, she said, "it's a concern that we have."

　　A spokesman for Biden's reelection campaign defended the use of TikTok to help get the president's message out. Deputy campaign manager Rob Flaherty noted³ that by Monday afternoon, Biden's TikTok video had been watched more than 5 million times.

　　The video, Flaherty said in a statement, demonstrates the campaign's continuing efforts "to reach voters in an evolving, fragmented, and increasingly personalized media environment."

　　Attempts in Congress to restrict TikTok have not resulted in approved legislation. A number of U.S. states and some universities have banned TikTok on state-issued devices.

　　Several lawmakers criticized the Biden campaign's decision. Among them was Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri. He wrote on X that Biden's campaign was "bragging⁵ about using a Chinese spy app even though Biden signed a law banning it on all federal devices."

　　Republican Senator Joni Ernst also reacted on X, expressing concern that the campaign had decided⁶ to put Biden on what she described as a "dangerous propaganda app."

　　Republican Representative Darrell Issa said, "Panic is when the Biden campaign joins TikTok after the White House banned the app from devices a year ago."

　　Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat, also expressed his national security concerns about TikTok and criticized the campaign's decision to put Biden on the app. "I think that we still need to find a way to follow India, which has prohibited TikTok," Warner said. He added, "I'm a little worried about a mixed message."

　　Words in This Story

　　app – n. a small computer program that can be put onto a mobile phone or other electronic device

　　allow – v. to permit

　　evolve – v. to develop or make something develop

　　fragmented – adj. broken into parts

　　elderly – adj. older people

　　brag⁴ – v. to talk with much pride about what you have done or what you have

　　panic – n. a sudden, strong feeling or worry or fear

　　prohibit – v. to officially ban something

1 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

2 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 brag   

v./n.吹牛，自夸；adj.第一流的

参考例句：

• He made brag of his skill.他夸耀自己技术高明。
• His wealth is his brag.他夸张他的财富。

5 bragging   

v.自夸，吹嘘( brag的现在分词 )；大话

参考例句：

• He's always bragging about his prowess as a cricketer. 他总是吹嘘自己板球水平高超。 来自辞典例句
• Now you're bragging, darling. You know you don't need to brag. 这就是夸口，亲爱的。你明知道你不必吹。 来自辞典例句

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。