Newsom Launches Probe Into Alleged TikTok Suppression Of Trump Critics After $14B U.S. Deal

SACRAMENTO, California — Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday evening said his office is reviewing whether TikTok violated California law by suppressing content critical of former President Donald Trump. "It’s time to investigate," the governor wrote on X.

The inquiry, first reported by POLITICO, follows complaints that TikTok flagged, throttled or otherwise limited posts critical of the Trump administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The allegations surfaced days after TikTok struck a $14 billion agreement to form a U.S. subsidiary governed by a majority-American board that places Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and other U.S. investors at the center of the app’s new ownership structure.

Newsom’s press account said the office "received reports — and independently confirmed instances — of suppressed content critical of President Trump," and asked the California Department of Justice to assess whether any actions violate state law. The office told POLITICO the independent confirmation involved sending a direct message that included the word "Epstein." According to Newsom’s team, TikTok returned a warning that the message had not been sent because it might violate community guidelines.

TikTok’s U.S. arm posted on X that recent platform bugs were caused by a "major infrastructure issue" following a power outage at one of its U.S. data-center sites. The company said the outage triggered a "cascading systems failure" that could cause slower load times, timed-out requests and engagement anomalies — including videos registering zero likes or views.

Neither TikTok nor the White House immediately responded to requests for comment on Newsom’s announcement. In a statement to POLITICO, California DOJ spokesperson Elissa Perez said Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office "is unable to comment on, even to confirm or deny, any potential or ongoing investigations," while stressing that free-speech rights are "a cornerstone of our democracy."

Reported Examples And Reactions

Since the deal, several users and public officials reported unusual engagement patterns. Multiple posts about Minneapolis protests against ICE and the federal agents' fatal shooting of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti reportedly saw zero views or likes. California state Sen. Scott Wiener said a video he posted criticizing ICE and referencing the Minneapolis shooting received zero views; after deleting and re-uploading the clip with references to ICE replaced by ice-block emojis, the re-upload drew roughly 300 views by Monday evening.

"Clearly, TikTok is suppressing criticisms of ICE," Wiener told POLITICO, adding he believed the timing of the engagement issues was no coincidence.

The developments have heightened scrutiny of how content is moderated on the app as it transitions to a new ownership structure. Newsom’s review asks state investigators to determine whether the reported actions amount to unlawful censorship under California law.