Gavin Newsom said he plans to launch a review into TikTok amid concerns that content critical of Donald Trump and his administration has been suppressed under the platform’s new owners.
The California governor weighed in on the situation Monday evening, writing on X, “It’s time to investigate. I am launching a review into whether TikTok is violating state law by censoring Trump-critical content.”
Alongside his update, Newsom reposted an X post from a user, named @intelligentpawg, who shared a screenshot of the alleged warning message they received when they tried to write the word “Epstein” on TikTok.
The alleged TikTok response read: “This message may be in violation of our Community Guidelines, and has not been sent to protect our community. If you believe this was a mistake, let us know so we can review this along with recent messages.”
so the agreement for tiktok to sell its US business to GOP backed investors was finalized a few days ago and now you can’t mention epstein lmao pic.twitter.com/qPmus7hjRA
— tori (@intelligentpawg) January 26, 2026
The user added on X, “so the agreement for TikTok to sell its US business to GOP-backed investors was finalized a few days ago and now you can’t mention Epstein lmao.”
This social media user isn’t the only person to call out TikTok after a new venture, named TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, took over the reins in the U.S. Over the weekend, “Hacks” star Megan Stalter left TikTok after claiming the app had censored her posts.
“We are being completely censored and monitored,” the actor and social media star posted on Instagram. “I’m unable to upload anything about ICE even after I tried to trick the page by making it look like a comedy video.”
Additionally, news-focused creators, including Aaron Parnas and Under the Desk News, also posted videos about either being censored or regarding plans to leave the app.
Newsom’s office also noted that the decision to review TikTok came after they “received reports — and independently confirmed instances — of suppressed content critical of President Trump.”
The controversy comes mere days after the social media app finalized a deal with a new venture, which will operate as an independent entity overseen by a seven-member American board of directors. American investors like Oracle, MGX and Silver Lake own more than 80% of the new venture, while ByteDance retains 19.9%.
Representatives for TikTok did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
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