Tag Archives: tiktok

The Takeover of TikTok was Never About China

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Despite what American politicians and some media talking heads claimed, the takeover of TikTok was never about China, or national security, or protecting data. And now that ownership has been transferred to pro-Trump and pro-Israel billionaires, it is not only being heavily censored, it is collecting far more data on its users than before.

The usual reasons for this are still true. Most data collection is for marketing. But why does TikTok need to know about your immigration status? Or your ethnic identity? Or your sexual orientation? We know that the Department of Homeland Security and other US agencies routinely harvest information from this kind of data collection.

Other questions have come up as well. Why is TikTok censoring the word “Epstein” and “ICE?” Why does the word “Israel” come up in virtually every search? The reasons for the latter become apparent when one listens to the new owners who have stated quite clearly that certain words, such as “Zionist,” will be considered “dirty” unless it is coming from someone who is a proud one. This isn’t about confronting and condemning antisemitism, especially since many Jews identify as anti-Zionist. It is about banning any interrogation of a political ideology which has resulted in the genocide in Gaza.

Some Democrats are saying that TikTok should be investigated, such as Gavin Newsom. But Newsom has always supported these kinds of draconian surveillance tactics. He signed the “Digital Age Assurance Act” which is wildly pro-censorship in the name of supposedly “protecting children.” So, his objections now are merely political theatre and it is only in reference to Trump. He wants to be able to keep up his completely useless meme war with him without providing any meaningful challenge to his fascism. And he doesn’t care one bit if Palestinian content is banned.

With all the bluster about China and their censorship of political speech, surveillance and data collection, a differentiating factor between it and the United States is that China does this largely to benefit its people. The US does not. This is not an excuse for authoritarianism, but it is a striking contrast between the two nations.

As TikTok becomes a free speech wasteland, other apps are rising. UpScrolled has seen a sharp rise in users. But it is based in Australia, which does not have the best record in online free speech either. Still, it is a far better alternative.

The hard truth is that the ruling, billionaire class feels like they are losing control of the narrative. Of “acceptable debate and dialogue.” They use terms like “civil discourse” as a cudgel against dissent and criticism. In this way, they never have to be interrogated for their role in atrocities, political repression and the global dismantling of democracy.

This is why they are busy buying up news outlets and social media platforms. And they do not care one bit if they drive these mediums into the ground, so long as they hold on to their wealth and every lever of power.

Kenn Maurice Orfanos, February 2026

Bread and Circuses, Without the Bread

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Since the US-Israeli takeover of TikTok, there have been endless complaints about censorship, banned content and banned content creators. Some are saying the platform isn’t even allowing viewers to type in the letters “ICE.” Others have said that the word “Israel” pops up in any search, regardless of the topic. And any search for the word “Epstein” apparently may get your profile flagged for violating “community guidelines.” It has been hemorrhaging members who are going to the new UpScrolled as an alternative.

This all began when billionaires and American politicians were wringing their hands over the influence it was having regarding Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Unsurprisingly, all of them claimed it was because of Chinese censorship, date collection and surveillance. But everyone, except the feckless, understood the real reason.

After ardent Zionist and billionaire, Larry Ellison, bought the company via his corporation Oracle, everything changed. The new CEO of TikTok, Adam Presser, boasted about banning the word “Zionist” as a form of hate speech unless it was used in the context of being a “proud Zionist.” If the content criticized the political ideology, it would be considered a “dirty word” and be censored. Anti-Zionists, which include an enormous swath of Jews, are not welcome any more.

Larry Ellison, sixth richest person in the world and close friend of wanted war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu, has made significant donations to the IDF as it commits heinous crimes against Palestinian civilians, including children. His company Oracle is an enormous, AI-generated surveillance technology giant.

Ellison, himself, has said he would welcome a “1984-style” surveillance state where AI analyzes video feeds to track, record, and influence citizen behavior. The billionaire claimed “citizens will be on their best behavior” because they are constantly being recorded and reported. Larry Ellison and others claimed that they were afraid of “Chinese surveillance,” even as Oracle had ties to Chinese resellers who have provided surveillance technology to Chinese police.

What all of this means is rather simple and banal. Elites like Ellison understood that these social media platforms were sharing real content about the atrocities Israel was committing. For the first time in human history, a genocide became widely seen and livestreamed by the victims.

The new TikTok is shadowbanning and silencing critics of Israel and the political ideology of Zionism. But it is part of a larger project of social control in the United States. Larry Ellison financed his son David Ellison’s acquisition of Paramount Global (the parent company of CBS).

They then appointed journalist flunky Bari Weiss as the Editor-in-Chief of CBS News. Weiss, known for her crusade against woke windmills of the mind, has also peddled in genocide apologetics and denial from her virtually inconsequential platform The Free Press.

Since taking over CBS, Weiss has been busy making the once respected news organization into a facsimile of Fox News for old centrists. Her first big event was an interview with Charlie Kirk’s widow and grifter extraordinaire, Erika Kirk. It had some of the lowest viewership in the networks history.

What we are witnessing in the United States is the complete decay of its communications and journalism institutions. From CBS to TikTok to MGM Studios, the aim is in controlling the dialogue and manufacturing opinions and consent within the accepted framework.

MGM, owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos, is most notoriously known for its recent bankrolling of the documentary “Melania,” which follows the first lady around for a few weeks as she does practically nothing but exist and wear lampshade-sized hats.

Regardless of how much money billionaire elites spend, what they are managing is nothing more than the death spiral of American society. The rapid unraveling of an empire, now headed by a dying, narcissistic, rapist who is terrorizing Black, Brown, Indigenous, women, queer and immigrant communities and occupying American cities as he rattles his saber at allies and adversaries abroad. Meanwhile, Americans struggle to make ends meet, terrified of medical bankruptcy and choosing between rent and food.

This is Bread and Circuses, but without the bread.

Kenn Maurice Orfanos, January 2026