Alec Mazo, General Partner at DGA Capital and former Dancing with the Stars champion, said the U.S. should embrace a policy of "reciprocity" with China when it comes to TikTok, suggesting that because China bans certain American social media companies, the U.S. should do the same with Chinese-owned companies.
"TikTok argument should be this simple: reciprocity! If China bans our companies, we ban theirs," said Mazo, according to his post on X.
China bans American social media companies in China, according to Forbes. "China heavily regulates its internet space through the 'Great Firewall,' which restricts access to many foreign websites and platforms, including major U.S. social media networks like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube," said Professor Justin Miller of the School of Cyber Studies at the University of Tulsa, Forbes reported. "This censorship is primarily driven by the Chinese government's desire to control information flow and maintain social and political stability," Miller said.
Screenshot of Mazo's post on X
| X
According to Federal Newswire, the The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act successfully passed the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill would require TikTok to divest from its parent company, ByteDance, or else be banned from app stores within the United States.
In a press release by the Select Committee on the CCP, U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), ranking member of the committee, said: "So long as it is owned by ByteDance and thus required to collaborate with the CCP, TikTok poses critical threats to our national security. Our bipartisan legislation would protect American social media users by driving the divestment of foreign adversary-controlled apps to ensure that Americans are protected from digital surveillance and influence operations of regimes that could weaponize their personal data against them."
Alec Mazo is General Partner at DGA Capital Management LP, an investment firm based in San Francisco, California, according to his LinkedIn bio.
