By Jennifer De Pinto, Anthony Salvanto, Fred Backus, Kabir Khanna
Most see TikTok's ties to China as a national security risk, and those who do would like to see the video-sharing app banned in the U.S. But younger people — who are the most likely age group to use it — are also the most opposed to a ban, or to the idea that it is a threat.
These views come amid larger concerns about social media platforms in general, such as the prospect of foreign countries using social media to manipulate Americans, and about the privacy risk of platforms collecting personal data.
In response, there's bipartisan support for the U.S. government placing at least some rules and restrictions on what social media companies can do with their users' personal data.
Most — whether they use social media or not — are concerned that foreign countries or agencies use these platforms to try to manipulate or influence the views of people in the U.S.
It's not just concerns about foreign influence, but about personal privacy, too.
About eight in 10 Americans who report using social media are at least somewhat concerned about social media companies putting their personal data at risk.
But even those who are "very concerned" about the privacy risk use social media daily, illustrating the complicated relationship Americans have with social media.
And the more concerned they are, the more government restrictions they want in place.
Some rare partisan agreement
We don't often see partisans agreeing on much these days, but similar majorities of Republicans and Democrats are concerned about foreign influence on social media and their own personal data being put at risk. And both parties support at least some restrictions on the way social media companies handle users' personal data.
Regarding TikTok specifically, partisans on both sides see it as a national security risk and favor banning the app in the U.S.
Where Democrats and Republicans disagree is on how people who run social media companies treat political views on their platforms. Most Republicans think these companies favor liberal views over conservative ones, whereas Democrats are more apt to think these companies don't take sides either way.
This CBS News/YouGov survey was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 2,117 U.S. adult residents interviewed between March 20-22, 2023. The sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, and education based on the U.S. Census American Community Survey and Current Population Survey, as well as the 2020 presidential vote. The margin of error is ±3.2 points.
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