China’s second richest man demands apology from ByteDance founder over online attacks

China’s second-richest man on Wednesday unexpectedly demanded that the country’s richest man, the founder of ByteDance, apologize for the alleged role TikTok’s Chinese brother Douyin played in “spreading rumors and misinformation.”

Zhong Shanshan, 69, founder and chairman of China’s largest packaged drinks company Nongfu Spring and the country’s second richest person according to the latest Hurun ranking, criticized Zhang Yiming, 41, for allowing misinformation to spread on ByteDance’s social media platforms and cause damage. Zhong’s reputation.

ByteDance declined to comment Thursday.

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Zhong’s remarks, part of a public appearance in southeast China’s Jiangxi province, were widely reported by Chinese media. The billionaire entrepreneur and the company he heads were the target of nationalist internet trolls earlier this year over its supposed Japanese packaging style, prompting a boycott by angry consumers.

Zhang Yiming, founder of ByteDance. Photo: Chinatopix via AP alt=Zhang Yiming, founder of ByteDance. Photo: Chinatopix via AP>

The series of attacks has led to debate about the responsibility of the Chinese government, opinion leaders, the public and social media for stoking nationalist passions, but Zhong is the first businessman to openly point the finger at online platforms.

In particular, he named Douyin, China’s most popular short video app, and Toutiao, ByteDance’s news feed tool, as the culprits.

“I ask Tutiao and Douyin not to use the so-called safe harbor principle to evade their responsibilities,” local media quoted Zhong as saying. “Please immediately remove (content) that hurts and defames me.”

He added that Zhang, “the de facto controller of ByteDance,” “must follow the rules of business courtesy.” Zhang has shunned the public spotlight since stepping down as ByteDance CEO and relinquishing his board seat in 2021, but he is believed to continue to wield significant power behind the scenes.

Nongfu Spring bottled water is sold in a supermarket in Hong Kong. Photo: Jelly Tse alt=Nongfu Spring bottled water is sold in a supermarket in Hong Kong. Photo: Jelly Tse>

Zhong said internet platforms, if left unchecked, cause more harm than any other organizations. He called on authorities to “come out and give us our due” and asked ByteDance to reveal its content recommendation algorithm.

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