Taylor Lorenz, Peter Van Valkenburgh: Why Banning TikTok Is Stupid and Unwarranted

The bipartisan RESTRICT Act is an infringement on a host of civil and economic rights that will strangle free speech and cryptocurrencies.

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Taylor Lorenz, Peter Van Valkenburgh: Why Banning TikTok Is Stupid and Unwarranted

Every Thursday at 1 p.m. Eastern, Zach Weissmueller and I go live at YouTube and Facebook with great thinkers, activists, politicians, entrepreneurs, policy makers and other people who are central to the world in which we live. We're excited to present the audio of those conversations as bonus episodes of the Reason Interview podcast.

This time around, we talked with The Washington Post's Taylor Lorenz and Coin Center's Peter Van Valkenburgh about bipartisan congressional efforts to ban TikTok and pass the RESTRICT Act, a far-reaching piece of legislation that imperils not just online free speech but all sorts of privacy rights and economic freedom, especially as they related to bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Today's sponsor:

• The Reason Roundtable live in New York! For the first time, Katherine Mangu-Ward, Peter Suderman, Matt Welch, and Nick Gillespie will tape live and unfiltered in New York. Come out on Tuesday, April 25 to the historic Village Underground (130 West 3rd Street)! Tickets are $25, include entry to the afterparty, and are going fast. For more details and to buy tickets, go here!

Comments

[JesseAz]

Still can't believe they invited TayTay to talk policy.

[Unicorn Abattoir]

Invite her to chat with the commentariat. We'll see tears within 5 microseconds.

[Minadin]

It will get disappeared, Soviet-style.

[Bill Falcon]

another reason why Reason should leave DC and NYC. Hobart and William Smith sending their best in Tay Tay. Invite Libs of Tik Tok on with Tay Tay..oh no..she is too mean for Nick, he will not get invited to the next Wapo and Salon praise groomers party..

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[Carlos Inconvenience]

Other than, I guess, not banning Chinese spyware, I can't think of too many Libertarian principles TayTay doesn't find wholly objectionable.

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[InsaneTrollLogic]

Seriously, Reason is now asking Taylor Fucking Lorenz her vapid opinion? You're really scraping the bottom of the barrel now.

Let us remind you who TayTay is...

https://twitchy.com/sarahd-313035/2022/10/05/tweeter-risks-wrath-of-some-of-americas-most-privileged-lib-journos-in-order-to-expose-their-efforts-to-hide-their-backgrounds-from-the-public/

Taylor Lorenz might actually be an even worse offender of this hypocrisy. While also born to fabulous wealth & privilege she has the family power to keep her past off the internet even after it became known.
She can actually get it removed forever from the internet. pic.twitter.com/olcc1lkBzh
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

What’s amazing about Taylor Lorenz is we know she was born in NYC, raised in the richest zip code of Connecticut. We know she attended a Swiss private boarding school & graduated from Hobart and William Smith College.
But that’s about it. pic.twitter.com/IcVodofvoL
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

While this woman of wealth & privilege can doxx even the poorest, weakest, least powerful people in the internet, publishing all their private information, address, work places and phone numbers.
She can apparently get anything about herself wiped from the internet forever… pic.twitter.com/GWXfqnZKfp
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

How would a TicTok journalist be able to get her history wiped off the internet forever?
Well hold onto your butts while we go balls deep into the family of Ms. Lorenz you can’t find on the internet without much much effort. pic.twitter.com/vhJOfvJGJG
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

For the record this all publicly available information, it’s just hard to find without looking.
Taylor Lorenz was born to mega rich developer Walter R. Lorenz (65) and Anne Lorenz (67) & raised in a $5.7 million dollar mansion. Her sister is Brook Lorenz of CNN. pic.twitter.com/GfdC4Fjndn
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

But it’s her uncle that’s the big story here. You see Taylor Lorenz’s mom and uncle were mega rich children of a very powerful politician… and R. McDonald (her uncle) is the owner / founder of the WayBackMachine internet archive. pic.twitter.com/7tSQkSikeH
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

Trying to find info about any of these people on the internet in nearly impossible. Taylor Lorenz even had her uncle exempt her twitter account from the WayBackMachine. Once she deletes her tweets they are literally wiped from the internet forever.
Now that’s power you can’t buy pic.twitter.com/xsNHcr98YE
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

Go ahead… Google her. Go to her wiki page. You see anything there like you do with literally any other public figures? NOPE!
Nothing.
She’s even managed to have any public record of her date of birth wiped. Pics of her from high school or collage that could age her?
Gone. pic.twitter.com/SJwfkfrxK9
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

For the record Taylor Lorenz was born October 21st 1984 in New York, NY… making her 37 years old.
She will be 38 in 16 days.
Wish her a happy birthday. pic.twitter.com/a0CAtRMPfn
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

Taylor Lorenz, a mega rich child of wealth and privilege from a powerful political family who’s uncle can wipe any of her history off the internet forever has been given massive platforms with the NYTs and WaPo to attack, smear, doxx, harass & terrorize anyone she wants.
— NevilleTheCat (@FearTheFloof) October 5, 2022

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

Trying to find info about any of these people on the internet in nearly impossible. Taylor Lorenz even had her uncle exempt her twitter account from the WayBackMachine. Once she deletes her tweets they are literally wiped from the internet forever.
Now that’s power you can’t buy pic.twitter.com/xsNHcr98YE

Uh, apparently it's power you CAN buy.

[Mike Laursen]

“even had her uncle exempt her twitter account from the WayBackMachine”

That sounds so conspiratorial. Anyone can request for their own content to be removed from the Wayback Machine. There’s an online form one fills out.

[VULGAR MADMAN]

“Just get on your knees plebes!”

[InsaneTrollLogic]

Except, Mike, she didn't go through that channel. Somehow, as usual, you either weren't paying attention, or you were being deliberately obtuse.

[VULGAR MADMAN]

He’s just a liar.

[perlmonger]

Taylor Lorenz is scraping the bottom of the chamber pot.

[VULGAR MADMAN]

She is the chamber pot.
I wonder if she’s been to Dubai.

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[Elmer Fudd the CHUD]

Elite leftists should be stripped of all assets and sent to Antarctica with on,y the prison jumpsuits on their back.

[VULGAR MADMAN]

I think they should be sent to the moon. Without life support.

[Alric the Red]

I googled her, and I found some controversy about her age, but so what? Makes me wonder how much of the rest of this rant has any real value. Seems like you’re practically hyperventilating, hoping to inspire everyone to hate her as much as you do. It’s absurd. The whole thing was a monotonous, vapid mess, saying nothing.

[Adans smith]

Not worth my time, she's a nasty biauch.

[Elmer Fudd the CHUD]

Oh wait, do you mean a goddamned cunt?

[Mike Laursen]

Why, again, do we not like this Taylor Lorentz person?

[VULGAR MADMAN]

She’s a dirty leftist cunt?

[InsaneTrollLogic]

Get a primer on anything after 1999 there, Laursen. You see, there's this thing she does called "doxxing". It's where a person finds out where someone lives and all their private information, and then proceeds to blab all about it on the internet, you know, that series of tubes you may have heard about. Well, you see, this Ms. Taylor aka "TayTay" has made a living out of doing exactly this. She got pissy when it was done to her (see my post above referencing @FearTheFloof. She's a progressive hypocrite, and that's primarily why no one here likes her. Does that catch you up on current events?

[VULGAR MADMAN]

It’s not hypocrisy if you’re just evil.

[Elmer Fudd the CHUD]

Fen less than we like you. So she’s completely hated.

[Minadin]

Holy fucking crap.

Wow.

Why do we dislike Stalin? I dunno, some people said some things he did might have been bad. For personal liberty.

She's an entitled hypocrite, for starters. We can all list how and why but you could do some fucking homework of your own for a refreshing change.

[Mike Laursen]

Why? What is wrong with your sharing information? Maybe you don’t actually know and you just know your bubble tells you to hate her.

[Minadin]

InsaneTrollLogic has a running list of offenses. But I'll sum up:

She's pro-censorship and anti-liberty. And a giant fucking hypocrite.

[Mike Laursen]

Ugh, so against my better judgement I unmuted InsaneTrollLogic.

He repeats, like three times, the accusation that Taylor Lorenz pulled some special strings to have her content removed from the Wayback Machine.

Anyone can do that. Their FAQ tells you how to do so right here:

https://help.archive.org/help/how-do-i-request-to-remove-something-from-archive-org/#:~:text=If%20you%20would%20like%20to%20submit%20a%20request%20for%20archives,you%20wish%20to%20have%20excluded

[Minadin]

It's her fucking uncle.

[perlmonger]

> but you could do some fucking homework of your own for a refreshing change.

Assumes capabilities not in evidence.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

great thinkers, activists, politicians, entrepreneurs, policy makers and other people

I'm feeling kind, so I guess I would stick Lorenz into the "other people" category here...

[VULGAR MADMAN]

Crazy white women?

[perlmonger]

No, those are still "people". Taytay isn't.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

Mr. Greenwald on Ms. Lorenz.

Only the narcissists in corporate media could take someone who grew up in Greenwich wealth and Swiss boarding schools, who regularly harms the lives of ordinary citizens with their massive journalistic platform, and tell the public: *she's* the victim and can't be criticized.

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[MasterThief]

Glad the commentary jumped on how ridiculous it is for Reason to promote Taylor Lorenz.
Yeah, we know who the bitch is. I've got no problem with them talking to anyone, but this is a whitewashing of who she is and what she's done.

[Elmer Fudd the CHUD]

Reason continues to sink lower every day.

[InsaneTrollLogic]

They go any lower, they're likely to strike the Earth's core.

[Mike Laursen]

Which is?

[VULGAR MADMAN]

Being a goddamn liar.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

Lorenz has been critical of Musk’s decision to release the so-called “Twitter Files,” which detail arbitrary bans on conservatives and government pressure on the social media outlet to squelch unfavorable comments on the regime.

If there's one thing Lorenz can't stand, it's journalism.

[InsaneTrollLogic]

She got her suspension from Twitter the hard way: she earned it.

[ThanksForTheFish]

For the second time, no to Taylor fucking Lorenz. Fuck that doxxing piece of shit.

[In Canis Credimus]

boo hoo hoo I don't like someone's politics so I want Reason to not interview them waaaaaaaaaaaa

[VULGAR MADMAN]

Eat shit cunt bag.

[In Canis Credimus]

typical MAGA reaction lol

[Elmer Fudd the CHUD]

You mean the reaction of anyone to her that possesses a sense of decency? Then yes.

I can see where a leftist, such as yourself, would not understand that.

[ThanksForTheFish]

I don't even have to get to her politics, she's a hypocritical, evil pile of entitled crap.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

I'd like to see this podcast remade, with Lorenz's role race and gender swapped.

[NOYB2]

1. The RESTRICT act is a bad piece of legislation, but better legislation can be crafted

2. The CCP has no civil rights in the US

3. TikTok is controlled by a hostile power and Congress has a duty to protect the American people

[In Canis Credimus]

Yeah, I support shutting down TikTok, but the RESTRICT act is a piece of shit legislation and needs to be dropped. I don't see why any government agency that controls foreign company licensing in the USA can't just shut them down. We don't need new broad bills that limit even more freedom. It's as bad as the Patriot act, which was a complete people of shit passed by idiots.

[VULGAR MADMAN]

I support dropping you, from a great height. Over water.

[Ersatz]

I wonder how many in congress have invested early in tiktok substitutes in advance of the passing of some kind of bill

[Commenter_XY]

Concur = RESTRICT Act is a bad piece of legislation

To me, it was the end run around 1A, 4A and 5A rights. This needs to be decisively killed. Now, restricting functionality of Tik Tok...things can be done there.

[nobody 2]

I hadn't looked into what the latest contrived acronym act was about yet, but if Taylor Lorenz opposes it that's a pretty good reason to support it.

[In Canis Credimus]

They are trying to turn this into a free speech issue, but it isn't. This is a psyop from China, and it's an act of aggression. TikTok needs to either be sold to a non-Chinese company or just turned off. Part of the government's minimal role is to fight off foreign invaders, and China is invading us right now through digital means.

[Mike Laursen]

Example of a Chinese act of aggression perpetrated via TikTok?

[VULGAR MADMAN]

Yet somehow you believe Russia got Trump elected via Facebook ads.

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[MikeM]

Normally don’t comment, but just want to +1 to the Taylor Lorenz WTF?’ing.

Might as well have a talk with MTG and AOC about the Trump indictment.

[MasterThief]

The latter would be significantly more interesting and I think Reason would at least pushback against one of them. This is just platforming a shitty person and allowing her to gaslight the audience

[Mike Parsons]

Taylor Lorenz is the absolute worst of AWFL low-watt statists ruining society.

A hall monitor that most hall monitors dont like.

Bottom of the barrel, maybe one of the worst of the 'journo'list, who are already the bottom tier of society.

Its a stain on your reputation to have her on. I would rather hear the Qanon Shaman's take, tbh. Higher IQ and more rational than taytay.

[rev-arthur-l-kuckland]

Also more consistent in beliefe

[Mike Laursen]

What, precisely, was her sin that has so many commenters here all worked up?

[ThanksForTheFish]

Doxxing, Hypocrisy. Bullying. Being an entitled douche.

Take your pick.

[Mike Laursen]

After asking people here what she did and not getting any straight answers, I went out and read about this person I'd never heard of.

I read about the accusations that she doxxed Chaya Raichik, but I also read that Raichik’s ownership of Libs of TikTok domain was already publicly visible in the Internet WhoIs? domain lookup at the time. Is that true or not?

[Mike Laursen]

https://domainnamewire.com/2022/04/20/reminder-theres-no-whois-privacy-for-us-domain-names/

"The United States still doesn’t allow Whois privacy for .us domain names, so Raichik’s address, phone and email were (and still are) public on the Whois record for the domain."

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[ThanksForTheFish]

She knocked on her political enemy’s parents door. Who does that? And then publishes it all in the WaPo, for no other reason than to harm her opponents. Oh right, a silver spoon white savior with a superiority complex. And this is AFTER taytay’s famous meltdown about exactly the same thing.

I suppose we could ask the WaPo writer denied a promotion after she took to Twitter to personally criticize him? Or talk about her demands for lockdowns and masking while not we eating one herself? Or any of the other completely made up accusations she's leveled against other reporters?

[Mike Laursen]

"She knocked on her political enemy’s parents door. Who does that?"

I read that was a rumor on Twitter that was never substantiated. Is there proof?

[Elmer Fudd the CHUD]

She also gave out the names and addresses of her victim as well.

[Mike Parsons]

A quick google search will give you photo evidence, but instead, you went to further lengths, to find Twitter gossip that it wasnt true?

Is this why you ask for 'cites' all the time? Because you are so incompetent at google search?

Or is it you pretend to be obtuse, and only actually seek out info that protects your lefty boos?

"this person I’d never heard of."

"I read that was a rumor on Twitter that was never substantiated. Is there proof?"

So you have never heard of her, or you heard rumors on Twitter that she never did it?

Oh, or somehow you researched it after making the initial claim, but somehow didnt click on the first google search / photo that comes up?

So you are either lying that you never heard of this situation, or you are so retarded you cant do basic internet research? Both would explain your style of argumentation, tbh

[Mike Laursen]

I thought you muted me, my brother.

Anyway, if there are photos, what about linking to one?

I didn’t do extensive research because I don’t care that much.

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[ThanksForTheFish]

You're right, it was just family members, not specifically parents. There are pictures of it.

[Mike Laursen]

Well, I’m not right or wrong, because I don’t claim to know anything about the incident. I wasn’t making an argument; I was asking questions.

[Mike Parsons]

"this person I’d never heard of"

Common thread among the lefties on the board. When it comes to an embarrassing lefty, or even a person that normally exposes the hypocrisy of the left, our resident progs have always miraculously never heard of them.

Didnt we also get "I didnt know CNN was a news channel" from you recently?

And "who even is Glenn Greenwald" from Tony?

Very interesting. Anytime the left ends up embarrassed or caught with their pants down you folks have somehow never heard of them.

Step outside your bubble now and then, brother. (Though in reality, we all know you guys know exactly what's happening, you just pretend to be obtuse and ask for 'cites', and dont want to claim your sides embarrassments)

[Mike Laursen]

I thought you muted me, my brother.

As far as I can tell, this Taylor Lorenz is hated inside a particular conservative, Libs of TikTok fan bubble, many members of which are present in the commentariat. They all seem to agree that she is an awful person but it’s not clear that many of them know why she is an awful person; they just know they are supposed to hate her.

Of course I know CNN has a cable TV channel. Go back and find my comment and re-read it. I said I don’t watch it, or any TV news. If you are going to parody me, you should try harder to get it right. (Oh, and you shouldn’t break character like you are doing today.)

For what it’s worth, I do know who Glenn Greenwald is.

[Red Rocks White Privilege]

After asking people here what she did and not getting any straight answers, I went out and read about this person I’d never heard of.

Woof, that's a straight-up lie there.

[perlmonger]

He's known as "Mike Liarson" for a reason...

[Set Us Up The Chipper]

Taylor Lorenz? Are you guys serious?

[BillyG]

China doesn't allow TikTok in China. What they do allow is very different. Why should we allow them to export something even China recognizes is bad?

[ThanksForTheFish]

Will this interview be like so many of Taylor Lorenz's tweets and get deleted in another 24 hours?

[DRM]

Apparently Ms. Lorenz, a so-called tech reporter, came to the discussion without actually knowing ByteDance's headquarters are in Beijing.

[YuckFou]

TikTok certainly needs to be banned - it is a clear spy tool for the CCP. BUT this act is garbage and the wrong way to do it

[perlmonger]

But I haven't had the opportunity to convince the most gullible of teenagers to try my "Mixing Ammonia With Bleach Challenge" yet!

[rbike]

So supporting reason is supporting Taylor Lorenzes's poor excuse for journalism. Sure.

[Sims]

One of Nick's worst interviews. Zach tried to challenger Taylor on some issues, but Gillespie just once again demonstrated his progressive priors. His "let's just ridicule something we all know is false" approach to controversial issues ruins interviews where valuable information could otherwise have been gained. Too bad.

[One-Punch_Man]

Wow! The most closed, whiney, victim class person. Tay-Tay doesn't want to ban Tik Tok. Just dox people. She is like a grader schooler.

Reason - free minds and free market. Just like the Washington Post - Democracy dies in the dark.

Lost all respect for Reason.

[Joe Brandon]

For the love of God, pull this article out of the old podcast feed. I keep scrolling too far and losing my lunch.

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