Factcheck this: Nepal banned TikTok

Question

A Cabinet meeting on Monday took the decision to ban the social media app.

Comments

This is a true statement. Acorreding to CNN on November 14, 2023, “Considering how TikTok is disrupting our social harmony, and the impact it’s having on our family and social structures, the cabinet has decided to ban TikTok for the moment,” Rekha Sharma, Nepal’s minister of communication and information technology, told a press conference on Monday."

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After further research, I have found that this claim is true. Nepal did decide to ban TikTok. According to CNN, Minister Rekha Sharma of Nepal, states the cabinet's ultimate justification for banning the app was due to “‘how TikTok is disrupting our social harmony, and the impact it’s having on our family and social structures.’” The New York Times reported that the cabinet found TikTok to spread ‘toxic content’ filled with religious hate and violence. For instance, the “virtual attacks on TikTok between Hindus, Muslims, and some Indigenous communities over the slaughter of cows, which are seen as sacred among a large number of Hindus.” For these reasons, the cabinet had decided to ban the app altogether.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/13/world/asia/tiktok-nepal-ban.html
https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/14/tech/nepal-tiktok-ban-hnk-intl/index.html

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In the first comment, I believe certain information is missing. I think you cited an important quote regarding the topic. But you don't provide a link to the source for people to actually check your work. I think it would be important to mention the reasons why Nepal is banning TikTok. Specifically, in the article below, it points out that the Nepal government believes the app must open an office first. "He said that to make social media platforms accountable, the government has asked the companies to register and open a liaison office in Nepal, pay taxes and abide by the country's laws and regulations." Speaking about comments made from Foreign Minister Narayan Prakash Saud. I think it would be important to mention this.

-https://www.npr.org/2023/11/14/1212838525/nepals-government-bans-tiktok-saying-it-disrupts-social-harmony

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According to CNN, this is a true statement. CNN, a reliable source reported that Nepal has banned the app TikTok for disrupting social harmony. The article contains quotes about the banning of the app by Nepal’s minister of communication and information technology. The article continues to go more in-depth about the use of TikTok in other countries and the restrictions placed in the US. Overall, this statement seems to be true.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/14/tech/nepal-tiktok-ban-hnk-intl/index.html#:~:text=Nepal%20has%20decided%20to%20ban,Asian%20nation%2C%20government%20officials%20say.

Answer 1

This statement is true. According to the New York Times,"The government in Nepal said on Monday that it was banning the popular social media app TikTok, saying the platform’s refusal to curb hate content was affecting “social harmony."" Additionally, AP News reports that Forgein Minister Narayan Prakash Suad stated that "“The government has decided to ban TikTok as it was necessary to regulate the use of the social media platform that was disrupting social harmony, goodwill and flow of indecent materials,”". That quote from Saud was also found in NPR. NPR stated that Nepal made it madatory for social media companies to register, pay taxes and abide by Nepal's laws. It is unclear whether Tiktok refused to follow those regulatios or if one of the company's actions led it to become banned. 

Comments

The fact-checking work is commendably thorough and well-referenced, lending credibility to the statement about Nepal's ban on TikTok. I believe you have been successful because you triangulated information from multiple reputable sources, including The New York Times, AP News, and NPR, to provide a comprehensive view of the situation. They effectively detail the Nepalese government's justification for the ban, citing concerns over social harmony and the flow of indecent material. You also have presented an intriguing aspect of the issue, the ambiguity surrounding TikTok's compliance with Nepal's regulations on social media platforms, without jumping to conclusions. This balanced approach, coupled with direct quotes and a clear presentation of facts from authoritative sources, makes the fact-check insightful and trustworthy.

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I thought you did a great job on this fact check! You provided good in-depth details that made your argument strong. The only thing I would say is to provide the link to your source(s). I think it's better so that others can fact-check your links.

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Great fact-check, always good to use multiple sources to cross reference, which you did. All three of your sources are very reliable and assist to verify the claim each in their own seperate way. The onlt thing I would do if I had the chance would be to check tik tok itself and or check the Nepal government website if at all possible - get as close as you can to the source

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I think this is a great fact check. You include sources like the New York Time and NPR that support your claim which are two very reliable news networks. You also include AP News which is another reliable source. Overall you were able to verify your own claim of how this statement of Nepal banning TikTok is true.

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Yes this is true. This factcheck is clear and concise and adds great in-depth processing to the topic at hand. Nepal banned TikTok citing the platform's refusal to control hate content and its impact on social harmony, as per statements from government officials and reports by the New York Times and AP News. The decision follows demands for social media companies to register, pay taxes, and comply with local laws.

Answer 2

This is true. According to the Washington Post, "Nepal on Monday announced a ban on the globally dominant short-form video app TikTok, saying its content disturbed “social harmony” in the country." NPR and CNN both supported this claim, saying that Nepal banned TikTok because it disturbed social harmony.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/11/14/tiktok-banned-nepal/ 

https://www.npr.org/2023/11/14/1212838525/nepals-government-bans-tiktok-saying-it-disrupts-social-harmony 

https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/14/tech/nepal-tiktok-ban-hnk-intl/index.html

Comments

Do you think social harmony is being negatively impacted in the USA too?

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The Washington Post is a great source to use. Perhaps you could also discuss the author who wrote the article and state whether they are a reliable source or not. You could also include more specific quotes from NPR and CNN. Great work!

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This factcheck uses reputable and reliable sources such as Washington Post and CNN. However, this factcheck could go deeper into what exactly "social harmony" is and why TikTok is disturbing it.

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Hi, I agree with your fact-check. I appreciate you listing three valid sources in this answer. However, I think elaborating on these sources could have been beneficial to this fact check. Including another citation from NPR or CNN would make your answer stronger and more reputable, rather than leaving them as resources to the reader. Overall, I agree with your fact-check and like your work!

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This was a very well written fact-check and you used a lot of sources so thats awesome. The only thing that could be better is if you added a bit more contects to explain your sources and the information they provide.

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I think your fact check is short and sweet. Straight to the point and you do a good job of mentioning a reliable source of where you found this claim to be true along with linking those cites as well.

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This answer does a good job of summarizing the source and giving multiple reliable sources for their claim

Answer 3

This is a true claim as Nepal did recently ban the app TikTok.

According to The Hill, the Foreign Minister said, “The government has decided to ban TikTok as it was necessary to regulate the use of the social media platform that was disrupting social harmony, goodwill and flow of indecent materials,” 

We can read that the reason TikTok has been banned is because it is disrupting the social harmony within the country. That they think it is best for the people and their well-beings and that banning will bring more of the society harmony back.

Source: https://thehill.com/policy/technology/4308987-nepal-tik-tok-ban-social-harmony/#:~:text=Nepal%20became%20the%20latest%20country,Monday%2C%20The%20Associated%20Press%20reported.

Comments

I like that you described how social harmony was being impacted.

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This was thoroughly fact-checked and has been reported in multiple reputable sources like NPR and USA Today.

Answer 4

This statement is true. According to countless higher-scale sources such as; NPR, USAToday, Time Magazine, The New York Times, CNN, BBC, THE Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal, Nepal has banned TikTok. I looked more deeply at NPR's article "Nepal's government bans TikTok, saying it disrupts social harmony". They claimed that the government felt as though the app was harming their country's social harmony and following a Cabinet meeting they announced their decision. 

https://www.npr.org/2023/11/14/1212838525/nepals-government-bans-tiktok-saying-it-disrupts-social-harmony

Answer 5

The statement provided is true. The Nepali government did ban TikTok. According to The New York Times, Nepal is banning TikTok. The government ban was due to "the platform's refusal to curb hate content." Time Magazine mentions that "the Nepali government had reached out to TikTok multiple times but the company declined to address their concerns about the content." Additionally, the government made a directive that outlines forbidden content for social media including hate speech, the promotion of sexual exploitation and drugs, fake news, terrorism-related messages, and private photos posted without consent.

Comments

I think that including Nepal's interaction with TikTok was a great informative detail to include that could give more reason as to why they decided to ban it. Good find!

Answer 6

The statement being claimed is true. New York Times has confirmed that Nepal's government had said on Monday that they were banning the now popular social media app known as Tik Tok. The reasoning behind it being 'The platform's refusal to curb hate content was affecting "social harmony"'. They went on to say the platform has over a billion users so losing the country's of about 30 million will not really affect the app. Another confirmation was given from AP News . Minister Narayan Prakash Saud  said himself the app will be banned immediately "“The government has decided to ban TikTok as it was necessary to regulate the use of the social media platform that was disrupting social harmony, goodwill and flow of indecent materials,”". 

https://apnews.com/article/nepal-tiktok-ban-social-media-854846a42ef566fa296ddaacd0099447

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/13/world/asia/tiktok-nepal-ban.html

Comments

I like how you provided a direct quote from the Minister and provided reasoning as to why they are banning the app. Do you think Nepal's decision to ban Tik Tok will influence other countries to do the same?

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I agree that directly quoting a Minister from the Nepalese government was a good idea, but it doesn't say what his portfolio is? It would make the information even more solid and traceable if we knew exactly what job Minister Saud has in the government.

Answer 7

This claim is true according to multiple news sources: 

• https://www.reuters.com/technology/nepal-govt-decides-ban-chinas-tiktok-ani-2023-11-13/
• https://www.npr.org/2023/11/14/1212838525/nepals-government-bans-tiktok-saying-it-disrupts-social-harmony
• https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/13/world/asia/tiktok-nepal-ban.html

However the reasons why differ between all of these sources. The New York Times claims that the ban is a result of hate content. Reuters claims that the ban is a result of cyber crimes committed on the app. After doing further research I found quote from the Foreign Minister Narayan Prakash Saud of Nepal saying that the ban was a result of the app " disrupting social harmony, goodwill and flow of indecent materials." 

Comments

I like how you used multiple sources and described the differences you found in each article. Your fact check was well written and concise!

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I loved how you explained the differing sources reasons for banning TikTok. It definitly gave me more information about the whole situation.

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I'm really glad that you went into depth about the different explanations each article had on this claim. I would not have known that NYT discussed it as hate content if not for you because the sources I found only had similar things to say to each other.

Answer 8

This is a true statement. I looked over multiple articles stating Nepal's government banning Tik Tok. According to NPR.com, Narayan Prakash Saud, the Minister of Foreign Affairs stated, "The government has decided to ban TikTok as it was necessary to regulate the use of the social media platform that was disrupting social harmony, goodwill and flow of indecent materials." You can also find the same information on usatoday.com, the New York Times, Reuters.com, etc. 

https://www.npr.org/2023/11/14/1212838525/nepals-government-bans-tiktok-saying-it-disrupts-social-harmony

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2023/11/15/tiktok-banned-in-nepal/71595893007/

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/13/world/asia/tiktok-nepal-ban.html

Answer 9

This article appears to be true after looking deeper into it. The Government of Nepal decided to ban Tik Tok because of the disruption of social harmony. According to USA Today the decision has been made but when it goes into action is still up in the air. NPR also stated "The announcement was made following a Cabinet meeting. Foreign Minister Narayan Prakash Saud said the app would be banned immediately." so it seems like the overall message is correct, but there are some details that may be unclear. As far as the author goes, I was unable to look into their background given it didn't state one. 

https://www.npr.org/2023/11/14/1212838525/nepals-government-bans-tiktok-saying-it-disrupts-social-harmony

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2023/11/15/tiktok-banned-in-nepal/71595893007/

Answer 10

This is true. According to NPR on November 14th, 2023, "The government has decided to ban TikTok as it was necessary to regulate the use of the social media platform that was disrupting social harmony, goodwill and flow of indecent materials," said by Nepal's foreign minister during his press conference on Monday. 

Comments

Hi, good job finding a quote that guarantees this to be true. Next time though, could you possibly link your source? It would help me piece it all together.

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You did a great job of finding a quote to prove this to be true. I would have loved to see you provide a link to this source. I think it would also be a good idea to find another source or two to back up your claim so the audience thinks you're credible.