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National

Joanna Robin in New York

America's TikTok debate shows US politicians are intent on curbing the app's influence. But is a total ban the answer?

TikTok Shou Zi Chew United States America ByteDance Sarah Kreps Project Texas Donald Trump Evelyn Hockstein Facebook

TikTok has made some Americans including Addison Rae (left) and Dixie D'Amelio rich and famous, but a US ban on the app is possible. (Reuters: USA Today Sports/Kyle Terada)

Until last week, few Americans would have been familiar with the enigmatic chief executive of TikTok, Shou Zi Chew.

But concern over the amount of information the Chinese-owned video-sharing app collects on its 150 million users in the United States has prompted calls from US politicians to ban it, citing national security risks.

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