Pre-reading questions:
- What are your initial thoughts or perceptions about TikTok as a social media platform?
- How do you think TikTok has influenced or changed the way people create and consume content online?
Vocabulary:
- separation /sep-uh-REY-shuhn/
- state /steyt/
- immediate /ih-MEE-dee-it/
- misleading /mis-LEE-ding/
- ensure /en-SHOOR/
[noun] – the act of dividing or disassociating one thing from another
After many years of partnership, the two companies decided on a mutual separation to pursue different business goals.
[verb] – to express or declare something clearly and explicitly
The teacher stated the rules of the classroom at the beginning of the school year to ensure everyone understood the expectations.
[adjective] – happening or done without delay; occurring or existing at the present moment
The doctor provided immediate medical attention to the injured patient in the emergency room.
[adjective] – causing someone to believe something that is not true
The misleading advertisement falsely claimed that the product could guarantee instant weight loss results.
[verb] – to make certain that something happens or is carried out successfully
The company implemented strict security measures to ensure the safety of its employees in the workplace.
Article reading:
Sources who requested anonymity disclosed that this separation of source code could set the stage for eventually selling off TikTok’s U.S. assets. Despite these developments, the company stated that there are no immediate plans for such actions, reaffirming that divesting its U.S. assets is not currently feasible. After initial silence, TikTok criticized these reports as misleading without further clarification. They also argued in a federal lawsuit that the required divestiture within the set timeframe is impractical and technologically unfeasible. Recently, engineering teams from the U.S. and China at ByteDance and TikTok have been working hard to separate millions of lines of code, particularly those related to the recommendation algorithm. This demanding task underlines the difficulties in separating TikTok’s U.S. operations from ByteDance. Despite facing significant legal and technical challenges, TikTok continues its efforts to ensure its U.S. operations remain autonomous, although this may lead to performance differences after the separation.
Comprehension questions
- What is the purpose of TikTok developing a new recommendation algorithm for its U.S. users?
- Why did TikTok start the initiative to change its recommendation algorithm before recent legislative actions?
- What did anonymous sources reveal about the separation of TikTok’s source code?
- What has TikTok said about its plans to divest its U.S. assets?
- What challenges are mentioned that TikTok faces in separating its U.S. operations from ByteDance?
Discussion questions
- Have you ever used an app that significantly changed its features or interface due to company separation or government requirements? If yes, how did these changes impact your usage or perception of the app? If not, how would you react if your favorite app underwent such transformations?
- How do you feel about the idea of a social media platform like TikTok working to make its operations independent from its parent company? Do you think this move is necessary? Why or why not?
- Should a government have the authority to force a company to change its operational structure for national security reasons?
- How might TikTok’s efforts to ensure autonomy in the U.S. reflect broader concerns about data privacy and national security in the digital age?
- How do you think it affects big tech companies when they have to follow different rules and laws in different countries?