Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

City of Las Vegas going all in on TikTok despite FBI concerns

City of Las Vegas TikTok

City of Las Vegas TikTok

The city of Las Vegas is a firm believer in communicating its messages over social media platforms. In one recent posting on its TikTok account, the city boasted about its top-10 TikTok videos of 2022. The city has no plans to abandon the account, despite concerns of the FBI over TikTok’s Chinese ownership and a recent ban on the use of TikTok by the federal government on government-issued cellphones.

When Jorge Martinez saw a video of Las Vegas’ newest showgirl statues on social media, one question remained: What happened to the originals?

“Where are the old ones now?” he asked on the city of Las Vegas’ social media post from early December.

He could have called the city and waited for minutes to be transferred to the right person to answer the question. But Martinez was able to get his answer minutes later with the click of only a few buttons, straight from the city’s TikTok account.

The original showgirls “were relocated farther north on Las Vegas Boulevard closer to the Arts District,” according to the team behind the city’s social media accounts.

The city, which established its TikTok account in early 2022 as another way to deliver information to residents, said it has already reached a million total views. The informational and sometimes aesthetically-pleasing videos have even been reposted to other social media accounts, like their Instagram that has over 115,000 followers as of Monday.

Officials say that residents “rely on the city to help address problems,” and will directly message them through social media. From a holistic nutritional counselor looking to get involved with the city’s sustainable farming programs to tourists professing their love for Las Vegas, the team overseeing these accounts has seen it all.

The city’s accounts received “more than 100,000 messages” in 2022, according to the city.

The ease of hitting a button and connecting with someone — especially a person who can immediately give you answers — is one “compelling part” of social media applications, according to Natalie Pennington, an assistant professor of communication studies at UNLV.

But some government institutions don’t include TikTok on their social media strategy because the application — owned by Chinese-based company ByteDance — has been flagged for “national security concerns” by the FBI.

FBI Director Christopher Wray spoke to members of a House Homeland Security Committee hearing in November 2022 about the “number of concerns” that the FBI has toward TikTok, including the possibility of data collection and controlling the algorithms of “millions of users.”

Governors from eight states have banned their agencies from using the application on state-issued devices: Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Utah, Maryland, North Dakota, South Carolina, and Nebraska (who banned the app in 2020).

In announcing the ban, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said in a tweet that “Protecting Alabamians’ right to privacy is a must” and he “surely (doesn’t) take a security threat from China lightly.”

A bill banning TikTok from federally-issued devices, with exceptions for “law enforcement activities, national security interests, and security researchers” was signed into law late last year by President Joe Biden. The application “has never been authorized for use” on devices belonging to the U.S. Military, according to a 2020 press release from the U.S. Army.

“(TikTok) is something that is such a ubiquitous platform now, they’re just very curious to see how that can be regulated and to what extent,” Pennington said. “Saying a state government can’t use it doesn’t stop the public from using it, so it’s a messy zone.”

Pennington said she thinks it’s “concerning” that the bans are coming from states with Republican governors, a group that Nevada has now joined with the swearing-in of Gov. Joe Lombardo earlier this month.

A Lombardo spokeswoman said his office had no comment on the platform. The state of Nevada has no official TikTok account, but sectors like the Nevada Department of Transportation and Nevada Division of Tourism do.

The city of Las Vegas has no plans of slowing down on itsTikTok content in the meantime, said public and media relations supervisor Jace Radke.

“The city of Las Vegas is aware of the concerns that the FBI has put forth regarding the TikTok platform. We are monitoring the issue, while continuing to utilize TikTok,” Radke said in a statement. “The city has been a leader in government social media use as a way to get feedback from and provide information to residents and visitors. While social media is only one of our communications channels, it has helped us dialogue with those who live here, and around the world, quickly and conveniently.”

Las Vegas isn’t the only local jurisdiction relying on TikTok as part of its social media network. It’s also being utilized by Henderson, Reno, Sparks and Carson City.

And UNLV basketball has been one of the leaders nationally in its TikTok account, where a video from a “What’s in the box?” series received 22.2 million views, 2.8 million likes and 7,000 comments. In this particular example, Runnin’ Rebels players reached into the cardboard box to be pricked by a pineapple, showing a lighter side of the program and giving supporters a look beyond the playing court.

“Right now, by having additional channels in which we can share things, there’s a greater chance that we reach a broader audience, and so if that comes to pass — which has happened in some states — and if it happens in Nevada, then that’s a potential outlet that’s gone,” Pennington said. “That could lead to misinformation.”