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Kelly Zhang (Chinese: 张楠; pinyin: Zhāng Nán) is a Chinese businesswoman. She is the chief executive officer of ByteDance China. She is responsible for overseeing the operations and management of the company's China portfolio, including the video-sharing platform Douyin and the news aggregator Toutiao.[1][2]

Key Information

Zhang was ranked 64th on Fortune's list of Most Powerful Women in 2023.[3] She was named in the Forbes list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women in 2020,[4] and in the Fortune's Most Powerful Women International list in 2020 and 2021.[5][6]

Early life and career

[edit]

Zhang studied painting as a child[7] and completed her university studies in 2003 with a degree in fine arts. After graduating, Zhang's first position was working on product planning and design for three years in Beijing at Digital Red, a mobile game studio.

In 2006, Zhang left Digital Red and began working at Qianchi Unlimited, a social media app developer.

In February 2013, Zhang founded a photo-sharing app called Tuba, which accumulated nearly 500,000 users in its first six months.

ByteDance

[edit]

Tuba was acquired by ByteDance in 2014, where Zhang had begun working as a product manager.[1][8] Zhang was then put in charge of ByteDance's user-generated content business.[7] She has been credited for the success of Douyin, which was launched in September 2016, and was named the CEO of Douyin in March, 2018. During Zhang's tenure as Douyin's CEO, she worked to build Douyin's presence in Chinese cities by developing partnerships with international luxury fashion and sports brands.[1] Zhang was also responsible for other ByteDance brands such as Huoshan Video, photo editor Qingyan and video editor Jianying.[1]

In March 2020, Zhang became CEO of ByteDance's China business.[2][9] In January 2021, Zhang was responsible for the rollout of Douyin Pay, a built-in service to allow Douyin users to buy goods and services within the app.[6]

Awards and recognition

[edit]

References

[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Kelly Zhang

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from Grokipedia
Kelly Zhang Nan (Chinese: 张楠; pinyin: Zhāng Nán; born c. ) is a Chinese business executive who serves as chief executive officer of Ltd.'s China business group, overseeing operations for products including news aggregator and short-video platform Douyin. She joined in 2014 as a , contributing to early successes like Neihanduanzi before leading the 2016 launch of Douyin, which rapidly grew into China's leading short-video app through data-driven algorithms prioritizing . As Douyin's CEO from 2018 to February 2024, Zhang expanded its ecosystem with integrations and launched Douyin Pay in 2021, enabling in-app transactions for its hundreds of millions of daily users. Promoted to ByteDance China CEO in March amid the company's global valuation surge past $100 billion, she has managed domestic regulatory compliance and product diversification, including a shift toward AI tools like video editor CapCut following her Douyin role transition. Her leadership has drawn international recognition, including rankings on Fortune's Most Powerful Women International list (#45 in , #48 in 2021) and ' World's 100 Most Powerful Women (#62 in ), highlighting her role in 's ascent as a tech giant under China's competitive landscape.

Early life and education

Family background and upbringing

Kelly Zhang was born in , Province, , in the early 1980s. Public records provide scant details on her family background or specific upbringing, with Chinese media noting limited personal biographical information beyond her origins in this historic northwestern city known for its role in China's ancient trade and modern industrial growth. Her formative years coincided with China's post-1978 economic reforms, which accelerated , education expansion, and market-oriented incentives in regions like Shaanxi, though no verified accounts link particular family influences—such as parental professions or household dynamics—to her later pragmatic approach in tech product development. This scarcity of documented personal history reflects broader patterns in profiles of Chinese tech executives, where emphasis typically falls on professional milestones rather than private origins.

Academic and early professional training

Zhang earned a in fine arts in 2003. Upon , she took her first professional role at Digital Red, a Beijing-based studio among 's earliest in the sector, focusing on and design from 2003 to 2006. This position provided initial exposure to the nascent landscape in , where mobile gaming demanded creative adaptation to limited user interfaces and emerging online behaviors. In 2006, Zhang joined Qianchi Unlimited, a developer of applications, remaining there until 2013. During this period, she engaged deeply with China's formative mobile internet ecosystem, honing expertise in analyzing user engagement patterns and leveraging data to refine content strategies—foundational practices that anticipated later demands in short-video platforms. Her fine arts training complemented these efforts, emphasizing visual principles amid the competitive push for intuitive, user-centric digital products in a rapidly digitizing economy.

Pre-ByteDance career

Initial roles in tech and business

Following her graduation with a fine arts degree in 2003, Kelly Zhang entered the tech sector at Digital Red, a Beijing-based studio among China's pioneers in the field. There, from 2003 to 2006, she focused on and design, contributing to early efforts in amid the nascent mobile internet landscape in . This role provided foundational experience in user engagement and content adaptation for mobile platforms, skills that later informed her approach to rapid product iteration. In 2006, Zhang transitioned to Qianchi Unlimited, a developer of applications, where she deepened her expertise in analyzing user behavior and leveraging data analytics during the explosive growth of mobile internet services. This position honed her ability to derive insights from user interactions in competitive social environments, a capability evident in subsequent ventures. Her work at Qianchi positioned her to address challenges in user retention and platform scalability, precursors to handling high-growth digital products. By February 2013, Zhang had founded , a photo-sharing application targeting China's burgeoning users. The app quickly scaled to nearly 500,000 users within six months, demonstrating her proficiency in fostering viral growth and monetization strategies in saturated markets akin to those dominated by ecosystems. Tuba's success underscored Zhang's adeptness at navigating regulatory and competitive pressures in content-sharing platforms, directly linking to her later emphasis on data-driven user acquisition. This entrepreneurial stint marked a pivotal step in building scalable tech operations before larger corporate integrations.

Key experiences leading to ByteDance

Prior to joining , Kelly Zhang demonstrated expertise in developing platforms during China's nascent mobile internet era, particularly through her work on applications that emphasized visual sharing and user engagement. In 2006, she joined Qianchi Unlimited, a developer of apps, coinciding with the iPhone's launch and the shift toward mobile-first experiences, where she honed skills in tailored to emerging user behaviors in digital communities. A pivotal experience was founding , a photo-sharing app, in February 2013, which enabled users to share images with friends and rapidly attracted nearly 500,000 users within six months. The app's success stemmed from deep user immersion, with average sessions lasting about one hour and involving viewing around 150 photos, revealing strong demand for visually driven, shareable content in a market dominated by giants like and Alibaba. This venture showcased Zhang's ability to foster content virality through intuitive interfaces and community features, directly appealing to ByteDance's interest in recommendation-driven platforms. These experiences, built on her earlier role from 2003 to 2006 at Digital Red—one of China's first studios—where she focused on amid early challenges, positioned Zhang as a specialist in high-engagement digital products. ByteDance's acquisition of in 2014 recognized her proven track record in navigating Beijing's competitive tech ecosystem, providing a direct pathway to contribute to content-centric innovations like Neihan Duanzi, and laying groundwork for algorithmic content strategies without prior internal roles.

Rise at ByteDance

Entry and early contributions

Kelly Zhang joined in 2014 following the company's acquisition of , a photo-sharing application she co-founded in 2013. She initially served as a , leveraging her prior experience in mobile gaming and to integrate into the firm's burgeoning operations. In her early tenure, Zhang was placed in charge of Neihanduanzi (Neihan Duanzi), ByteDance's initial (UGC) platform launched prior to Toutiao's dominance, which focused on short jokes and memes to foster . Drawing on her background in UGC from , she contributed to building ByteDance's foundational content communities, emphasizing features that enhanced user interaction and retention through personalized feeds amid China's competitive and regulated app ecosystem. This work supported the company's shift toward diversified products beyond news aggregation, aligning with empirical testing of content algorithms to prioritize viral, data-driven discovery over broad distribution. Zhang's product efforts during this phase, from 2014 to mid-2016, aided ByteDance's user base expansion from millions to tens of millions in China, as Neihanduanzi's mechanics informed iterative improvements in recommendation systems tailored to local content moderation and user behavior patterns. These contributions occurred during ByteDance's high-growth period post-Toutiao validation, where product refinements focused on causal factors like session length and share rates to sustain organic growth in a market dominated by established players like Tencent and Baidu.

Leadership of Douyin Group

Kelly Zhang became CEO of Douyin in March 2018, taking charge of the platform's operations as ByteDance's domestic short-video app amid intensifying market competition. Under her leadership, Douyin prioritized algorithmic recommendations and data-driven to drive user engagement, building on its 2016 launch to rapidly scale adoption in urban . Zhang's strategies emphasized monetization through advertising and creator incentives, while integrating features that fueled virtual gifting and early trials post-2018. By September 2020, these efforts contributed to Douyin surpassing 600 million daily active users, more than double rival Kuaishou's 300 million, with over 22 million creators generating 41.7 billion yuan (approximately $6.15 billion) in earnings over the prior year. This growth reflected Douyin's edge in polished, algorithm-optimized content appealing to younger demographics, contrasting Kuaishou's focus on rural authenticity and broader potential. In January 2021, Zhang oversaw the rollout of Douyin Pay, enabling seamless digital transactions for the platform's 600 million daily users and supporting in-app purchases tied to live streams and ads. Despite these advances, challenges persisted in sustaining diversification beyond ads, as Douyin navigated regulatory scrutiny on content and practices while fending off Kuaishou's entrenched lower-tier .

Executive roles and strategic oversight

CEO of ByteDance China

In March 2020, amid escalating U.S.-China technology frictions including early scrutiny of TikTok's data practices, appointed Kelly Zhang as CEO of its China operations, consolidating oversight of domestic product lines such as and other localized apps under her leadership. This separated China-focused management from global efforts, with Zhang reporting directly to founder Zhang and emphasizing operational stability in the home market as international revenues faced potential disruptions from export controls and reviews. Her role involved directing , , partnerships, and compliance with Chinese regulatory frameworks, including mandates under the 2017 Cybersecurity Law that require storage of user data within for operators. Zhang's tenure prioritized alignment with state directives on , where ByteDance's algorithms and editorial teams enforced restrictions on sensitive topics to avoid penalties from the , thereby sustaining platform accessibility and user engagement domestically. This approach causally supported revenue resilience, as accounted for over 80% of ByteDance's total income during the period, derived from and integrations across diversified apps rather than reliance on any single product. By fostering ecosystem expansion—such as integrating short-video features with aggregation—her strategy mitigated risks from overseas volatility, contributing to ByteDance's overall valuation growth to approximately $250 billion by late 2020 despite U.S. ban threats.

Focus on CapCut and post-Douyin responsibilities

In February 2024, Kelly Zhang transitioned from her role as CEO of the Douyin Group to oversee , ByteDance's application, as part of the company's push into AI-enhanced content tools. This shift emphasized CapCut's development as a global-facing utility, separate from ByteDance's core social platforms, to support creators in producing and exporting videos across international markets. Zhang directed strategic enhancements in CapCut, prioritizing AI-driven features like automated effects, keyframe animations, and generative tools to streamline editing for non-professional users. These innovations aimed to attract a broader creator base by reducing technical barriers, enabling quick content adaptation for platforms beyond . By integrating such capabilities, CapCut contributed to ByteDance's diversification into non-social revenue streams, including premium pro versions with advanced exports and templates that monetized through subscriptions rather than ad-dependent feeds. The app's standalone design under Zhang's purview facilitated its utility in regions with restrictions, allowing users to edit and prepare videos for alternative distribution without reliance on ByteDance's feed-based apps. This focus aligned with ByteDance's broader pivot toward tool-based ecosystems, evidenced by CapCut's competition with incumbents like Premiere Rush through accessible, mobile-first AI integrations launched in mid-2024.

Resignation from Douyin amid company pressures

On February 7, 2024, Kelly Zhang announced her resignation as CEO of Douyin Group via a post on , stating that she would redirect her efforts toward ByteDance's video-editing application CapCut to pursue areas of personal passion and business potential. ByteDance confirmed the departure, with a spokesperson indicating that Zhang would assume other internal responsibilities, particularly advancing CapCut's AI-driven features amid competitive pressures in content creation tools. The company opted not to appoint a successor, instead distributing oversight: Douyin's president Han Shangyou would coordinate core operations including e-commerce, news, and advertising, while department heads managed specialized functions, signaling a deliberate flattening of the hierarchy to enhance agility. This transition occurred against ByteDance's broader internal directive for heightened urgency, as articulated by CEO Liang Rubo, in response to accelerating AI competition and the need for leaner structures in a maturing short-video market—dynamics typical of realignments in fast-scaling tech entities facing resource constraints and demands.

Achievements and business impact

Contributions to ByteDance's China growth

Under Kelly Zhang's leadership as CEO of ByteDance China since March 2020, the company's domestic operations solidified their dominance, with the China market generating approximately $69 billion in annual revenue by 2023—more than the rest of the world combined—and accounting for the bulk of ByteDance's overall earnings through and emerging channels on platforms like Douyin. Douyin's user base expanded to 850 million monthly in , surpassing international figures, driven by Zhang's focus on , operations, and partnerships that optimized algorithmic recommendation systems for personalized content delivery, fostering sustained engagement over traditional media structures. Zhang spearheaded Douyin's post-2019 pivot toward integrated , enabling live-streaming sales and in-app transactions that diversified beyond ads; by 2020, over 22 million creators had earned 41.7 billion RMB (about $6.15 billion) through the platform, contributing to ByteDance's surge of 111% to $34.3 billion that year, with operations as the primary engine. This shift capitalized on Douyin's 600 million daily announced in September 2020, where precise user data analytics under Zhang's oversight enabled targeted , propelling ByteDance's -driven sales to $110 billion by 2023—eclipsing competitors like —through expansions that leveraged short-video virality for direct consumer conversions. During the , Zhang's strategic adaptations maintained momentum, with Douyin's short-video ecosystem adapting to heightened domestic online activity, sustaining user growth and amid lockdowns; this resilience underpinned ByteDance's profits climbing 60% to $40 billion in 2023, rooted in scalable infrastructure that prioritized real-time algorithmic refinements over rigid content hierarchies. Her cross-product oversight ensured that innovations in personalization algorithms differentiated ByteDance from state-aligned media silos, causally linking high retention rates—evidenced by Douyin's trillion daily video views—to , as user-generated loops self-reinforced platform stickiness without relying on external subsidies.

Expansion of short-video and editing platforms

Under Kelly Zhang's oversight as head of the Douyin Group, the short-video platform expanded rapidly through targeted product management and operational strategies, achieving 600 million daily active users by August 2020. This growth stemmed from data-driven enhancements to user-generated content and algorithmic promotion of viral short-form videos, building on Douyin's launch in 2016 where Zhang contributed to initial development. Creator incentive programs played a key role, enabling over 22 million creators to generate more than 41.7 billion yuan in revenue during 2020. Zhang's emphasis on partnerships and marketing further scaled Douyin's ecosystem, integrating features like and to sustain user retention amid competition from platforms such as . ByteDance's core recommendation algorithms, refined under her China product leadership, prioritized personalized content feeds to drive repeated engagement via short-video loops. Transitioning in 2024 to oversee CapCut, Zhang directed the video-editing app's international expansion as a utility-focused complement to short-video platforms, amassing hundreds of millions of users globally by emphasizing free, AI-assisted tools for creators. This positioned CapCut to challenge incumbents like and , with features enabling seamless export to restricted ecosystems like abroad. Her strategic pivot integrated AI for automated editing and effects, enhancing accessibility for non-professional users and supporting broader content production pipelines.

Recognition

Industry rankings and awards

In 2020, Kelly Zhang debuted at No. 45 on Fortune's Most Powerful Women International list, recognizing her promotion to CEO of ByteDance's operations and in scaling Douyin to over 600 million daily active users amid competitive short-video market dynamics. She retained inclusion in the 2021 edition, with Fortune citing her oversight of Douyin's integrations like Douyin Pay, which leveraged platform data for revenue growth exceeding traditional advertising models. Forbes ranked Zhang No. 62 on its 2020 World's 100 Most Powerful Women list, attributing her position to directing China's product strategy during the company's valuation surge past $100 billion, driven by algorithmic content distribution efficiencies rather than external favors. In its 2021 China's Top 100 Businesswomen ranking, she placed No. 12, based on metrics including 's domestic revenue dominance in , where her teams optimized user retention through data-driven iterations on short-form video and editing tools. These placements emphasized operational metrics like gains over 's global rivals, with noting her role in adapting to regulatory scrutiny while sustaining user growth.

Media portrayals as a key female executive

Media outlets, particularly in Asia-focused publications, have portrayed Kelly Zhang Nan as ByteDance's "most powerful woman," a descriptor tied to her oversight of core Chinese operations including Douyin, which she helped launch in 2016. This framing appeared prominently in coverage of her February 2024 resignation from Douyin Group CEO, where and Yahoo Finance emphasized her influence within the company amid ByteDance's push into AI and tools like CapCut. Such labels highlight her rarity as a high-ranking leader in China's tech industry, where executives are predominantly male, but often gloss over the performance metrics of her tenure, such as Douyin's user growth to over 600 million daily active users by 2020 under her early guidance. Western business media, including Fortune and Bloomberg, have similarly positioned Zhang as a pivotal figure in ByteDance's China-centric expansion, featuring her on the 2020 Most Powerful Women International list at No. 45 for managing flagship apps like Douyin and . These depictions underscore her strategic role in product innovation—such as leveraging data analytics for —but tend to amplify narratives around gender barriers, with limited analysis of causal factors like ByteDance's algorithmic efficiencies that drove Douyin's rapid through , reaching billions in by 2018. This approach risks prioritizing symbolic "" breakthroughs over verifiable outcomes, such as her pre-Douyin success with Neihan Duanzi, ByteDance's initial hit app in 2014. In Chinese state-aligned media and industry analyses, portrayals emphasize Zhang's alignment with national priorities for technological , especially following U.S. restrictions on TikTok's international arm starting in , framing her Douyin as a model of domestic resilience. Coverage in outlets like TechBuzz credits her with scaling Douyin to a billion daily views within 18 months of launch, attributing success to iterative rather than external identity factors. These accounts, while celebratory, reflect a toward state-favored narratives of tech sovereignty, often omitting granular scrutiny of internal decisions like adaptations to regulatory demands. Overall, across sources, Zhang's media image as a trailblazing executive stems more from her direct contributions to ByteDance's core growth engines than from gender-specific tropes, though the latter frequently serve to humanize coverage in gender-diverse discussions.

Criticisms and controversies

Oversight of content censorship and algorithmic biases

Under Kelly Zhang's leadership as head of Douyin from its early development through her role as China CEO starting in March 2020, the platform implemented rigorous systems that censored discussions of politically sensitive topics, including the 1989 events and Uyghur issues, in compliance with Chinese regulatory requirements. Leaked internal moderation guidelines, as reported in 2019, directed real-time removal or suppression of videos referencing these subjects, with moderators trained to flag content promoting "Tibetan independence" or alongside broader bans on narratives. User reports and investigations confirmed that such filters extended to Douyin, where automated tools and human reviewers preemptively blocked uploads, often before publication, fostering an environment where creators avoided these topics to evade account suspensions. Douyin's recommendation algorithms, overseen during Zhang's tenure, demonstrated empirical biases toward amplifying Chinese Communist Party (CCP) propaganda while demoting dissenting viewpoints, as evidenced by content analyses of trending videos. A 2023 study found that propaganda constituted 49.8% of trending content from government and CCP-affiliated Douyin accounts, with algorithms prioritizing state media narratives on topics like Xi Jinping's leadership over neutral or critical discourse. This prioritization reduced visibility of non-state-approved material by up to 36.8% in non-mouthpiece media feeds, creating causal feedback loops where users encountered predominantly affirmative CCP messaging, empirically linked to decreased engagement with oppositional content. Critics, including U.S. congressional testimonies, argued this algorithmic favoritism eroded free expression by incentivizing self-censorship among creators, who adapted content to align with boosted themes to gain views. Defenders of these practices, including statements, attributed them to adherence to China's cybersecurity laws mandating removal of "harmful" information, positioning as a legal necessity rather than ideological alignment. However, independent analyses highlighted proactive elements beyond minimal compliance, such as algorithmic boosts for "decentralized " via user-generated state-positive videos, which expanded reach without overt top-down mandates and correlated with suppressed metrics in platform data. This approach, under Zhang's operational oversight, prioritized platform growth within China's ecosystem over unfettered information flow, with causal evidence from user behavior studies showing heightened conformity in patterns.

Implications of ByteDance's ties to Chinese state policies

ByteDance, under the leadership of executives like Kelly Zhang during her tenure as Douyin Group CEO from 2020 to 2024, aligned its operations with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) directives emphasizing "positive energy" content to promote social stability and ideological conformity. Douyin established a dedicated "Positive Energy" trending section, attracting over 500 government and state media accounts that disseminated narratives aligned with official ideology, including patriotic challenges organized by various government levels to encourage user-generated content supporting state goals. This integration reflected broader 2010s-2020s regulations requiring platforms to prioritize content fostering "playful patriotism" and collective harmony, enabling ByteDance to navigate regulatory scrutiny while sustaining domestic growth. Proponents of this alignment, including CCP officials, argue it enhances societal by curbing destabilizing and amplifying unifying messages, as evidenced by Douyin's in state-backed campaigns that correlated with reduced online unrest during events like the 2020 . However, critics contend that such ties facilitate amplification, with Douyin's algorithms prioritizing state narratives over diverse viewpoints, including suppression of content questioning official origins or policies, in line with platform rules banning "subversion" of the CCP. During Zhang's oversight, ByteDance's internal CCP —established in 2014 and expanded via a 2017 regulatory campaign—ensured compliance, though U.S. congressional inquiries highlighted executive ties, including Zhang's, to party structures as enabling potential narrative control. Empirically, non-compliance risks materialized in fines and summonses; for instance, in September 2023, Chinese regulators penalized platforms for content "disrupting the online order," underscoring the coercive where alignment yields but lapses invite penalties. Yet, 's sustained expansion under these policies—despite occasional rebukes—demonstrates causal incentives for integration, as platforms like Douyin derive operational viability from embedding state priorities, potentially at the expense of unfiltered . This dynamic, overseen by figures like Zhang as CEO, illustrates how private tech firms operationalize CCP influence through verifiable content partnerships rather than overt directives.

Data privacy and national security concerns under her tenure

During Kelly Zhang's tenure as CEO of ByteDance's Douyin Group from March 2020 to February 2024, the platform's practices drew scrutiny for potential risks stemming from China's legal mandates on access and storage. Under laws such as the 2017 National Intelligence Law and the 2021 Data Security Law, Chinese companies like are required to store user domestically and assist state intelligence efforts upon request, raising concerns that Douyin's extensive collection of behavioral, , and biometric from over 600 million monthly could be accessed by entities including the for surveillance or influence operations. Critics, including U.S. intelligence officials, argued this framework enabled potential weaponization against foreign interests, with FBI Director Christopher Wray warning in that 's ties to the posed a "significant concern" due to risks of exploitation for or cyber threats. Specific incidents during this period amplified these worries. In June 2020, shortly after Zhang's appointment, banned Douyin and 58 other Chinese apps citing data privacy violations and threats, alleging that user information was transmitted to servers in without adequate safeguards, potentially enabling unauthorized access by the Chinese government. U.S. investigations intensified, with a 2022 report revealing that employees in , under the broader corporate umbrella Zhang helped lead domestically, had improperly accessed U.S. user data multiple times, including location records of specific individuals for internal reporting—prompting to admit lapses but deny systematic state sharing. Additionally, a 2023 by former executive Yintao Yu alleged that company leadership dismissed warnings about Chinese government oversight of global data flows, claiming a "Supreme Leader" internal channel facilitated CCP directives, though contested these assertions as unfounded. ByteDance maintained that Douyin's data practices complied with Chinese regulations while isolating sensitive operations, with Zhang overseeing enhancements like localized storage to mitigate cross-border risks; however, skeptics pointed to empirical evidence of hacks and leaks, such as a 2022 breach exposing internal documents on ties to bureaus, underscoring inherent vulnerabilities in the CCP where corporate denials conflict with mandatory legal cooperation. These issues indirectly implicated Zhang's China-focused role, as Douyin's data infrastructure supported 's global , including CapCut's expansion, fueling bipartisan U.S. legislation like the 2024 Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, which targeted divestiture over unmitigated risks of theft and user profiling. Despite company firewalls like Project Texas for U.S. data, causal analysis of China's unified model suggested persistent exposure, prioritizing state imperatives over privacy in ways that eroded trust among Western regulators.

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  47. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341324211_PositiveEnergy_Douyin_constructing_playful_patriotism_in_a_Chinese_short-video_application
  48. https://www.atlantis-press.com/proceedings/sdmc-23/125996255
  49. https://ipvm.com/reports/douyin-prc-censorship
  50. https://chinamediaproject.org/2022/01/27/meta-propaganda-converges/
  51. https://www.adexchanger.com/platforms/congress-isnt-buying-tiktoks-plans-to-protect-us-user-data-from-the-chinese-government/
  52. https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/16046410
  53. https://www.congress.gov/crs_external_products/IF/PDF/IF12640/IF12640.1.pdf
  54. https://www.npr.org/2024/04/26/1247347363/china-tiktok-national-security
  55. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ex-bytedance-exec-claims-reporting-003523356.html
  56. https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3220428/ex-bytedance-worker-claims-tiktok-owner-stole-content-inflated-user-numbers-lawsuit-over-firing
  57. https://jamestown.org/program/tiktok-a-threat-to-us-national-security/
  58. https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/24/24-656/336136/20241227160309446_24-656%2520ts.pdf
  59. https://www.congress.gov/event/118th-congress/house-event/115519/text
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