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Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) wants to appeal primarily to young voters on TikTok
Photo: Felix Zahn / photothek / IMAGO
Chancellor Olaf Scholz now also has a TikTok account: The Federal Government's Press and Information Office (BPA) announced on Monday that @TeamBundeskanzler was present on the platform of the Chinese parent company ByteDance. In the future, this channel, like other social platforms, will provide information about the work of the Chancellor and the Federal Government and provide a look behind the scenes of everyday government life. "I do not dance. “Promise,” Scholz wrote on the X platform, alluding to the short video clips that are common on TikTok. Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) opened an account in March.
The platform has been criticized because of security concerns that both ByteDance and the Chinese government reject. There is even a debate going on in the USA as to whether ByteDance should sell TikTok or the platform should be banned in the USA.
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The Chancellor announced in February that he also wanted to be present on TikTok because it is used by an above-average number of young people. They also get a significant portion of their news from there. The right-wing populist AfD has so far dominated the parties in Germany. “The TikTok offer is aimed particularly at younger users,” emphasized the government on Monday.
US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola also have their own TikTok channels.
muk/Reuters