TikTok’s US chief says video site will stay despite Trump ban
Live MintTikTok will continue to operate its hit music video app in the U.S., whatever comes of the threatened Trump administration ban on its business, senior executive Vanessa Pappas said. “We believe we have multiple paths forward to ensure that we continue to provide this amazing app experience to the millions of Americans who come to rely on it every day,' Pappas said Thursday in one of her first interviews since U.S. President Donald Trump issued executive orders calling for the sale of TikTok’s U.S. business by its Chinese owner, ByteDance Ltd., or a complete shutdown of its American operations, citing national security concerns. The White House has been ratcheting up a fight with China's government and businesses and has issued restrictions on a number of Chinese tech giants, including Huawei Technologies Co. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. Trump issued an executive order on Aug. 14 requiring TikTok to divest its U.S. business within 90 days under a ruling by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., or CFIUS. Pappas declined to comment on the deal negotiations but said she’s tried to provide staff with multiple forums to express their fears and concerns openly, including weekly town hall sessions where she answers questions from TikTok’s 1,500 U.S. employees anonymously.