Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (D) announced Thursday that the state will join a bipartisan investigation into popular Chinese-owned social media company TikTok.
“Recent reports on social media’s impact on the mental and physical health of young people raise serious questions among attorneys general across the nation. Ultimately, we are concerned about protecting our youth,” Nessel said in a press release. “I am proud to join my colleagues in this investigation. Given this is an ongoing investigation, I will not be discussing any details beyond this announcement.”
Attorneys general in several states are seeking to find out whether the company has violated state consumer protection laws and caused harm to their residents.
“The investigation will look into the harms such usage causes to young users and what TikTok knew about those harms,” the press release said. “The investigation focuses, among other things, on the techniques utilized by TikTok to boost young user engagement, including increasing the duration of time spent on the platform and frequency of engagement with the platform.”
The investigation is the brainchild of Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III, who also announced Thursday his intention to investigate TikTok.
“Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III, along with a bipartisan group of attorneys general, is leading a nationwide investigation of the social media platform TikTok to determine whether the company violated state consumer protection laws that put the public, especially children and young adults, at risk,” his press release said.
Florida is reportedly participating in the investigation as well, though Attorney General Ashley Moody has not released any word on the state’s participation.
California, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, and Vermont will also partake in the investigation.
TikTok is not the only company facing scrutiny for targeting children.
Facebook drew the ire of many Americans when it announced in March of last year that it wanted to launch a version of its photo-sharing platform Instagram for users aged 13 and under.
It is estimated that 40 percent of kids under the age of 13 – the supposed cutoff for Facebook and Instagram use – use the platform anyway.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Dana Nessel” by Dana Nessel.
