Overview
- Over the weekend, many U.S. users said videos about ICE and other Trump‑related topics failed to upload or showed zero views.
- TikTok USDS said a power failure at a U.S. data center triggered cascading system errors that stalled uploads and misreported views and earnings, adding that recovery is ongoing.
- Some DMs containing "Epstein" were temporarily blocked by an automated warning; the company called it a bug under investigation and messages were deliverable again by Tuesday.
- California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a state review, and Sen. Chris Murphy labeled the alleged suppression a threat to democracy, while TikTok said footage of Alex Pretti’s killing has been available since Saturday.
- The episode follows the creation of TikTok USDS—80.1% owned by Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX—which coincided with creator departures, a spike in uninstall rates to roughly 150% above normal, and intensifying scrutiny of new terms.