US EditionTikTok Says It’s Not Blocking ‘Epstein’ In Messages After Users Accuse Platform Of Censorship
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is reviewing TikTok's messaging glitches amid a data center power outage causing bugs, with no official content ban confirmed by TikTok.
- On Jan 27, 2026, TikTok said it is investigating why some users cannot send 'Epstein' in TikTok direct messages, prompting California Gov. Gavin Newsom to call on the California Department of Justice to review.
- TikTok blamed a power outage at one of TikTok's U.S. data centers for a major infrastructure issue causing multiple bugs, slower load times, and display errors affecting platform creators.
- Tests by NPR found inconsistent blocking of single-word messages, while creators reported temporary `0` views and missing earnings, and DownDetector flagged disruptions impacting 200 million U.S. users.
- Newsom's office confirmed suppressed Trump-critical content and asked the California Department of Justice to investigate, while public figures’ allegations boosted downloads for rival app UpScrolled.
- The U.S.-China deal transferred TikTok's U.S. business to Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX, each holding a 15% stake, with Oracle overseeing U.S. user data.
13 Articles
13 Articles
TikTok is investigating why some users can’t write ‘Epstein’ in messages
The issue around the word "Epstein" comes as users experience outages and functionality problems since the popular video app was recently sold to a group of mostly U.S. investors, including Trump ally Larry Ellison.
Just a few days after TikTok operations took place in the United States by an American majority entity (including Oracle, led by Larry Ellison, an ally close to President Donald Trump), after months of political pressure on Chinese owners, the platform faces massive censor charges. Thousands of U.S. users claim that attempts to send private messages containing the word “Epstein” are temporarily blocked, generating errors such as “not allowed”, “…
The Independent
The Independent (US)TikTok users in the US can’t write ‘Epstein’ or see anti-Trump videos
Alleged censorship comes after investors loyal to Trump take over social media platform
TikTok seems to have blocked direct messages containing the name Epstein, so the Californian governor is now launching an official investigation, the new U.S. operators are talking about technical errors.
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