Officials for the Biden administration demanded on Wednesday that the Chinese company that owns TikTok sell the app, amid ongoing domestic security concerns, or face a potential ban in the U.S. But, in the grand scheme of things, Jimmy Fallon doesn’t think a ban will amount to much.
Currently, TikTok is owned by ByteDance and generates an estimated $10 billion per year. The company has been negotiating with federal officials since the Trump administration, hoping to retain ownership of the video app, but so far have failed.
Over the last several months, concerns have been raised about national security issues that could arise if China’s government continues controlling an app that tens of millions of Americans use daily. But Fallon is pretty sure that China already has daily access to American data.
“It is a bold move by Biden,” Fallon joked. “If he bans TikTok, China will only be able to spy on us with literally everything else.”
The “Tonight Show” host joked that if BIden goes through with the ban, he might get cussed out by the younger residents of the country.
Meanwhile, ByteDance representatives have tried to convince federal officials that TikTok operates independently, but according to a report from The Information, the Chinese government is woven into the corporate structure of ByteDance, and can influence any and all of its operations.
You can watch Fallon’s full monologue in the video above.
