NASHVILLE — The Tennessee House on Thursday approved legislation barring public college and university campuses from allowing the China-based TikTok social media platform on their Wi-Fi networks, sending the measure to Gov. Bill Lee.
Senate Bill 834, which recently cleared the upper chamber, passed the House on an 80-11 vote.
The bill makes no specific mention of TikTok, which has exploded in popularity with its popular video-sharing app. Instead, the bill bans any app associated with the People's Republic of China.
TikTok is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance. An estimated 150 million Americans use the app, and concerns have been raised in Washington and elsewhere that it poses a threat to national security and user privacy. There are other concerns it could be used to promote the Chinese regime's propaganda and misinformation.
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"This bill is putting it into law that our higher education colleges and universities will not make available on Wi-Fi any app that is associated in part or in whole with the Chinese Communist Party," House Republican Caucus Chairman Jeremy Faison of Cosby told the House.
House Democratic Caucus Chairman John Ray Clemmons of Nashville had questions.
"I have the feeling we're discussing one particular app. This same app is being discussed in a hearing today in the federal government," Clemmons said, asking Faison if he could delay final action on the bill until House hearings conclude.
"Regardless of what they get done in D.C.," Faison replied, "we'll make sure we're doing it right here in Tennessee, so I would prefer us voting for it today."
Faison said he would hope the measure would apply to any other company that met the bill's description.
"I would just say that if you're associated with that country, that business, we need to be careful with our internet and capabilities of things that they can find," Faison said. "Our security, whether it's internet security or physical security, is one of the most important things we should do, and I just believe this is internet security, that we should make sure all of our higher ed institutions are secure."
Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Ella Talley scrolls through her phone while she and her friends work outside at UT Chattanooga on Thursday, March 23, 2023.Clemmons questioned why the bill doesn't go further.
"We don't have any concerns about any of the computer software that's bought by the state of Tennessee or any other governmental agency that is produced or made in China or the iPhones sitting on almost every members' desk if they're perhaps manufactured in China and actually holds data, collects data information, photographs. You don't have any concern about that, it's just this specific app?"
Faison replied, "I would probably support you if you brought a bill to take care of those things."
"I think you might have a problem judging," Clemmons said.
Rep. Antonio Parkinson, D-Memphis, told Faison the "Make America Great Again" hats promoted by former President Donald Trump were made in China.
"Are we going to ban those?" he asked.
Faison said the bill deals with software.
Among lawmakers voting against the bill was Rep. Yusuf Hakeem, D-Chattanooga.
"I guess in my mind is, is it just a beginning?" Hakeem said of the legislation in a phone interview following the House's action. "You start with TikTok, and then you find another app that in your mind is not appropriate or in the best interest. We don't always have a consensus. So when you start with one, I think it's just the beginning and there are some others down the line you want to bar."
At the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Thursday, students said they would just access TikTok using the data plan for their mobile device if the school blocked the app from its Wi-Fi. Some said that if the move was made for security reasons, they supported it.
"That's fine for them to do that because I'm still going to use my data," UTC Junior Aniya Flournoy said in an interview. "And I don't use their Wi-Fi. Their Wi-Fi doesn't work for me with anything."
When asked if the government should legislate platforms like TikTok, UTC Senior Kennedy Rawls said that if it was for security, she agreed with the decision.
Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Ashlyn Harris and Lilly Campbell laugh as they scroll on their phones outside at UT Chattanooga on Thursday, March 23, 2023."Since it's for safety, it's a good thing," Rawls said in an interview. "And you still can use the option to use it if you have your own data. That's why it's not that bad."
UTC Freshmen Sarah Pewitt said teenagers will still access TikTok, even with regulations.
"Teenagers are super good with technology," Pewitt said in an interview. "I feel like easily teenagers could still find a way to access TikTok."
Pewitt wondered why the ban was specifically for college campuses.
"They might as well cancel the app altogether instead," Pewitt said. "Go big or go home."
Pewitt said TikTok is a good platform for learning but can also be bad for mental health. She added that she goes through phases of deleting the app for weeks at a time.
"You learn stuff, but at the same time, it's social media," Pewitt said. "It's a lie most of the time. There's nothing you can trust on the internet. It's bad for everyone's mental health that watches TikTok."
Staff writer Carmen Nesbitt contributed to this story.
Contact Andy Sher at asher@timesfreepress.com or 615-285-9480.