A newly updated study concludes that the popular Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok suppresses anti-China content and influences user opinion on the communist country’s human rights record and society, likely manipulating its algorithm.
The study from researchers from Rutgers University and the Network Contagion Research Institute, follows preliminary findings from the group released in August and is now backed by more evidence than before.
The findings are set to be published in a peer-reviewed journal, Frontiers in Social Psychology, as the embattled social media app faces a forced sale to continue operating in the United States. The company is currently challenging the law passed by Congress earlier this year that would ban the app if it doesn’t cut ties with its Chinese owners, ByteDance, before January 19, 2025.
President-elect Donald Trump has also injected himself in the case in an attempt to delay the law from taking effect. The president-elect credits the video-sharing app with his electoral gains among young voters in the 2024 election and has spoken favorably of the platform leading up to his inauguration.
“We did go on TikTok and we had a great response with billions of views,” Trump said in a speech at AmericaFest, a conference hosted by Turning Point USA and Turning Point Action in December, shortly before seeking to intervene in the case. […]
— Read More: justthenews.com
Trump Denies “Fake News” Report on Changes to Economic Plans
by Publius
President-elect Donald Trump has refuted a Washington Post report suggesting his aides were considering a more restrained tariff policy. The report claimed that Trump’s transition team was contemplating a tariff plan that would be less extensive than his campaign promises, targeting only imports deemed critical to national or economic security….
Gold Breaks Out With Central Bank Surge and Interest Rate Drops Expected
by Sponsored Post
Precious metals are seeing gains once again following the post-election dip, just as many economists had expected. Even China, which had been holding back for five months, returned to purchasing massive quantities of gold. “Falling U.S. interest rates and ongoing solid demand from central banks are supporting the gold price,”…
JPMorgan: “Debasement Trade” Into Bitcoin and Gold Is Here to Stay
by Tyler Durden, Zero Hedge
(Zero Hedge)—The so-called “debasement trade” into gold and Bitcoin is “here to stay” as investors brace for persistent geopolitical uncertainty, according to a Jan. 3 research note by JPMorgan shared with CoinTelegraph. Gold and BTC “appear to have become more important components of investors’ portfolios structurally” as they increasingly seek to…
Hochul to Increase Payments to a Program That Serves Illegals
by Independent Sentinel
Welfare champion Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York has proposed a huge expansion of the state’s child tax credit. People here illegally can collect. New York is a one party state and Hochul runs it like a dictator. Hochul wants taxpayers to pay for an increase in the maximum credit…
More Details Emerge Regarding the Plan to Kill a Supreme Court Justice
by Zachary Stieber, The Epoch Times
(The Epoch Times)—A California man allegedly told authorities that he flew to the East Coast to kill Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, according to newly filed court documents. Nicholas Roske flew across the country from California to Virginia on June 7, 2022, landing just before midnight. He got into a…
Kevin O’Leary Wants to Save TikTok by Buying It and Rewriting Its Algorithm
by The Blaze
“Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’Leary said that he was working on a deal to save the popular TikTok social media platform from being banned in the U.S. over privacy concerns. Republican lawmakers have banned TikTok from being used by state and federal employees after numerous reports that the platform collects…
AI Chatbots Credited With Surge in US Holiday Sales
by Valuetainment
AI-powered tools, particularly chatbots, significantly boosted online holiday sales in the US to $282 billion in 2024, a nearly 4% increase from the previous year, according to Salesforce. Globally, online sales reached $229 billion, up from $199 billion in 2023, as retailers utilized targeted promotions and personalized recommendations to attract…
Dana White Has Joined Meta’s Board of Directors
by Cactus Williams, Discern Report
UFC CEO and long-time friend of Donald Trump, Dana White, has joined Meta’s board of directors alongside Charlie Songhurst and John Elkann. This is just the latest in a series of decisions Meta has made following Trump’s historic electoral victory which seemed to be aimed at cozying up to the…
The Biggest Sale on Beef With 25-Year Shelf-Life EVER
by Sponsored Post
Let’s cut to the chase. Prepper All-Naturals is offering an unprecedented 40% off for its “Beef Steak” survival bags with promo code “steak40”. With a 25-year shelf life and a single ingredient (beef, of course), our most popular product is available for a very limited time with the biggest discount…
McDonald’s to Abandon Diversity ‘Goals’ in Hiring, to Stop Participating in Woke Non-Profit’s ‘Corporate Equality Index’
by The Post Millennial
Filmmaker and cultural commentator Robby Starbuck has gained another scalp in his effort to flip US corporations away from woke agendas focused on DEI, diversity, equity and inclusion. “BIG news,” Starbuck reported on X. “McDonald’s is ending a number of woke DEI policies today. Now let me tell you what’s…