This piece nails it! The "new" TikTok "deal" is simply an exercise in decorative shape shifting for a situation that has basically been in place for 3 years.

This was never about addressing data privacy, propaganda, or national security. It was always about the US grabbing a big chunk of ownership one of the most popular and successful social media apps. The US Congress just made sure that is was Trump sycophants who got the "win". https://www.techdirt.com/2025/12/19/tiktok-deal-done-and-its-somehow-the-shittiest-possible-outcome-making-everything-worse/ #TikTok #Oracle #SilverLake #MGX #NationalSecurity #SocialMedia #China #ByteDance #Algorithm #Privacy #DataPrivacy