Global News Podcast - TikTok signs deal to avoid US ban

Episode Date: December 19, 2025

The Chinese-owned app TikTok has agreed to sell its US operations to overcome the threat of a ban prompted by national security concerns. The joint venture will be led by American investors. ByteDance's video-sharing platform boasts over a billion users worldwide, including more than 170 million in the United States.Also: US Democrats release another batch of Epstein photos. Australia announces a gun buyback scheme in the wake of the Bondi Beach mass shooting. Violent protests erupt in Bangladesh after the death of prominent youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi. We meet the Ukrainian war widows who are fighting for their husbands legacies. And how researchers are using drones to investigate the health of whales in the Arctic.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment. Get in touch: [e-mail]

This is the global news podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Charlotte Gallagher, and in the early hours of Friday, the 19th of December, these are our main stories. After years of legal wrangling, TikTok signs a deal to save its future in the US. Democrats release another batch of photos from the estate of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Also, in this podcast, There are now more than 4 million firearms in Australia. The terrible events at Bondi show we need to get more guns off our streets. Australia announces a scheme to buy back guns after the Bondi Beach terror attack

and how researchers are using drones to investigate the health of Wales. After years of uncertainty, TikTok's future in the US may finally be secure. secured. The White House branded the social media app a national security threat and gave it two options. Distance itself from its Chinese parent company bike dance all be banned in the US. Now TikTok has signed a deal to sell part of its U.S. business to American investors, as our North America technology correspondent, Lily Jamali, told me. We have some details that come from a memo which I have viewed that was shared by TikTok CEO Shochu with employees today. So what we know is that it will be, the U.S. operations of TikTok will be majority owned by American investors.

These will include Oracle, the cloud computing giant that happens to be chaired by Larry Ellison, who is a close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump's. MGX, the Emirati Investment Fund, is also going to own a stake here. So that's of note. The Chinese owner of TikTok will also hold on to about 20% of the operation. This memo also talks about protecting Americans data and U.S. national security, which is why we got to where we are. Recalled that last year, Congress passed a law that required TikTok to either be sold to American investors or be banned. And so what we're seeing here today is confirmation that that sale is in the works that will be consummated by January 22nd, we're told.

So what does this mean for TikTok users in the U.S.? Well, there are 170 million American TikTok users here. This means that this long period of uncertainty for more than a year now, really, is over. Last year, it looked for a time like TikTok might go permanently dark in the U.S. Then Donald Trump took office, said he was going to save it. But still, he was sort of flouting the law by continually extending this deadline by executive order. I actually got to take to a TikTok user in Maryland. Her name is Tiffany Sianci.

She noted that it's not just the fact that, you know, TikTok is fun for American users. It's also a vital tool for a lot of small business owners and job creators in America. She noted the 7.1 million figure that TikTok sometimes floats as how many business owners use TikTok to market themselves on this platform. So she's hoping that new owners will make sure it stays a useful ecosystem for business owners like herself. But there is this big question about the outside. We did get some answers about that because the algorithm is what controls what American users see. What we're told is that it will be retrained on user data from Americans to ensure that the content feed is free from outside manipulation. Again, that's why this law was first passed.

TikTok has always denied that the algorithm was ever manipulated to elevate the political views that Beijing wants out there. And what do you think this says about U.S.-China relations at the moment? It's easy to read this as a sign of positive relations. You know, President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in October. And TikTok was really front and center ahead of that meeting. There's been so much tension between the U.S. and China on the race to win, you know, the artificial intelligence race, trade tensions and tariffs. And so, you know, when Trump and Xi met, we were told going into that, a deal would be finalized. Nothing was really put on paper after that as far as we could tell.

But here now we see that something has been finalized and the steel is moving forward. Lily Jamali, as we record this podcast, it's the eve of the deadline for when the U.S. Justice Department is expected to release the Epstein files. As Americans wait for those documents to drop, Democrats have made public another 68 photographs from the dead sex offenders estate, showing prominent figures, women's passports, and Island Development Plans. Our Washington correspondent, Normia Iqbal, told Valerie Sanderson about the latest images. Well, the first thing to say is that there's no context that come with any of these photos

or documents or maps and screenshots of text messages. So what we've got are more photos of prominent figures. Just to remind, these are photos from Jeffrey Epstein's estate. And these prominent figures include the Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, the former advisor to Donald Trump, Steve Bannon. There's the activist and writer Noam Chomsky. All three of them have said, yes, we had interactions with Epstein, but there's no suggestion of any wrongdoing.

There are some things that have caught our eyes here. There's been several new photos showing handwritten messages and different parts of a person's body. It appears to be a woman. They look like writing from the book, Lolita, the infamous book. And there's also an image that shows a screenshot of a message from an unknown sender to an unknown recipient saying, I will send you girls now.

But as I say, there's no suggestion that if you're in the photo, it means you've done something wrong. But I think what it does do, again, it just gives us an insight into who was in Jeffrey Epstein's world. Why are they all being released in something of a drip feed at one? Why now this batch? The Democrats on the committee are saying, well, we're just putting everything out there that, you know, we want to give people full transparency. but they have lots of lots of photos. There's going to be more. And I think that there is obviously a political angle to this.

Democrats know that this is a real weak spot for President Trump, and quite frankly, they don't have many cards to play in that context. They know that this is the story that won't go away for Donald Trump. It's a story that he can't get away from. And it's putting pressure on him. It's keeping the story in the public domain. And this all comes ahead of the so-called Epstein files. So these are files that the Department of Justice,

have in relation to all the criminal investigations into Jeffrey Epstein. And there is a law passed by Congress recently that compels the Justice Department to make those files public. So we'll probably be talking again about more Epstein files that have come out. But I do think ultimately it is the Democrats trying to put pressure. However, they have been criticized by Republicans on the committee who also want the files out, but they think that it should be done in one go. They've accused the Democrats of cherry picking photos to create a negative perception of Donald Trump. Just to remind Donald Trump does not deny that he was friends with Jeffrey Epstein, but he said he cut ties with him many years ago in the early 2000s and there's

never been any evidence that President Trump has done anything wrong. Nomya Iqbal. Marshall law has been a way of life in Ukraine ever since Russia launched its full-scale invasion almost four years ago. Elections have been suspended and men of fighting age must remain in the country and be ready to be called on to fight. Those who die in combat are remembered with military honours, but others seemingly forgotten. Soldiers who die by suicide are not considered military heroes and their families don't receive financial support. From Kiev, BBC Ukrainian reporter Anastasia Kribinova has spoken to three women who've lost their loved ones to suicide during the war. Their names have been changed in this report and a warning. This report

contains references to suicide and themes people may find distressing. Victoria can't hold back her tears as she speaks about her late husband, Andri. I want to remember him the way he was before the war. Andri volunteered at the start of the invasion. He witnessed some of the fiercest battles with the Russian army, but later died by suicide, according to Ukrainian officials. When they told me he had taken his own life, my life split in two before and after.

What followed was a cold shock. Military funerals have become part of Ove's daily rhythm. The dead are remembered as heroes. Their coffins often carried on the shoulders of fellows. soldiers. But there were no such honors for Andréi. Ukrainian law classifies his death as a non-combat loss,

meaning no compensation and no burial with honors. Victoria says the stigma she carries has left her isolated. What hurts me the most is that my husband was defending this country. Even if he

did take his own life, he spent a year and a half, protecting this land. She feels let down by the official investigation, which has since been reopened after the prosecutor acknowledged shortcomings. And she is not alone in feeling overlooked. The ever-growing military cemetery near Frankivsk

is a stark symbol of Ukraine's losses. Katerina comes here every other day. Her only son, Orrist, is buried here. He was just 25. Katerina tells us her son was a shy young man with impaired eyesight. He was stopped by a conscription patrol on the street and sent to the front line as a communications officer.

He was torn from his normal life, placed in unbearable conditions with a constant threat to his own life. Then came the news. He had taken his own life. They took my child, sent him to war, then brought me back his half-decomposed body. That's it. Outside Kiev, Mariana shows us a video her husband, Anatoly, sent from the front line.

He describes the desperate conditions and need for support. He was a very good person. kind man. The war broke his mind. He took his own life in a military hospital after being injured in battle. I hear women say, my husband died a hero, but yours, he did it himself. Like the other women we spoke to, Mariana was denied compensation and couldn't bury him with honors. She now feels judged by other widows. Olga Reschitilovar is Ukraine's first military ombudswoman.

She says she receives reports of three to four suicides a month and concedes that number could rise as the war continues. She is pushing for stronger psychological support for soldiers and changes to how cases of suicide are investigated and documented. Among all those hundreds of cases, there are inevitably some where a martyrs, is covered up as suicide. She believes Ukrainian society has a part to play

in properly honoring all victims of war. The whole of society needs to understand that the people who three or four years ago were your neighbors have been through something entirely different and the warmer the welcome they receive here, the fewer tragedies will face. Fewer suicides, less drug abuse and alcoholism there will be. As Ukraine approaches another new year of conflict,

Those who have lost relatives on the battlefield will again remember their sacrifice, while those families touched by suicide in this war will continue their fight to be heard and to have their loved ones honored. That was Anastasia Grimeneva, reporting from Kiev. Still to come in this podcast. When I think of Hofner guitars, I think of the Beatles. You know, an iconic European brand. that they've been around for more than 100 years.

Why Paul McCartney's guitar maker is going out of business. Violence has broken out in Bangladesh after Sharif Osman Hardy, a prominent student protest leader who was shot in the head last week, died in hospital. As news of the 32-year-old's death emerged, hundreds of his supporters took to the streets of Dakar. Global Affairs reporter and Barrasanne Etirajan is following developments. Sharif Osman Hardy was one of the student leaders who were leading this movement against Prime Minister Sheikh Qasina last year

that toppled our government. There were weeks of protests in which hundreds of people were killed that attracted the global attention. And since then, an interim government has been in charge and they recently announced elections in February. That will be the first elections after the House. of Ms. Asina, who many critics say ruled with an iron hand, an autocratic style of government in Bangladesh. Now, there were several student leaders in different political parties.

They have their own parties and movement and groups. And Hardy was one of them. He was planning to contest in the elections and he was shot in Dhaka last week. He was seriously injured. And then a few days ago, he was taken to Singapore for treatment. And now his death has also triggered violence. And people were shocked. They were worried about already political tensions running high in a volatile country. And this has been an incredibly volatile time for Bangladesh. We spoke then about the violence last year, the ousting of Sheikh Khashina.

I imagine a lot of people fear in Bangladesh that this could get worse. On Thursday evening, as the news of Sharif Osman-Hardy emerged, hundreds of protesters gathered at a squire in the capital Dhaka. they were holding protests, and then a group of demonstrators also went to the buildings of two of the prominent dailies in Bangladesh, the Prathamalo and the Daily Star, and these buildings were vandalized, and a part of one of the buildings was set on fire.

So the firefighters had to come and rescue the journalists who were trapped inside, so there was violence. Troops had been deployed in that area now. And we are also hearing incidents of violence in other parts of the city. and so there is a tense situation now at the moment in Bangladesh and there is also criticism on social media from some sections where they were asking

where is the government, where is the police, why people are protesting like this so this has become a big issue now in Bangladesh. And this murder, I know that there have been arrests but have the police said what the motivations could have been? There have been different theories, conspiracy theories going around, but we still don't know what was the real motive.

The police have made some arrests. On Friday, some of the student leaders have called for more protests. And in fact, on a Friday, there will be a big gathering mourning the death of Hardy. And the government has also declared a half a day morning on Saturday. So his death has triggered a lot of anger and shock. And he was an outspoken critic of neighboring India, where currently Sheikh Azina has taken refuse. and Bangladesh has been asking the Indian government to repatriate her after the court verdict against her last month.

And India says they are looking into the request on the legal background to the whole issue. So it can likely increase tensions between Dhaka and Delhi as well. Ambarrison Etirajan. Days after the mass shooting at Bondi Beach, the Australian Prime Minister has announced a national gun buyback scheme. Anthony Albanese said the authorities, would collect and destroy hundreds of thousands of firearms, including surplus, illegal and newly banned weapons.

There are now more than 4 million firearms in Australia. The terrible events at Bondi show we need to get more guns off our streets. The government will introduce legislation to support the funding of this buyback scheme and meet the costs on a 50-50 basis with states and territories. Our Sydney correspondent Phil Mercer has more details. This will be the biggest gun buyback in Australia since the mid-1990s. Back then, it was a response to a mass killing on the island of Tasmania in which 35 people were killed by a lone gunman.

And once again, we've seen the federal government act swiftly after a major tragedy. So on Sunday, 15 people were murdered here at Bondi Beach, and the government has announced not only measures to combat hate and radicalization, Now it's moving into gun reform with this huge buyback scheme that the government anticipates will take hundreds of thousands of firearms out of circulation. What that will do for illegal weapons that aren't registered is unknown. But once again, it's an attempt by the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to reassert his authority. He has faced stinging criticism in Australia in recent days over what his critics say is a failure

to curb anti-Semitism. So in the last 24 hours' announcements by the Prime Minister is in attempt by him to get back on the front foot. Phil Mercer. An international team of researchers have used drones to investigate the health of Wales, uncovering a dangerous threat to their existence. The whales were shown to carry a deadly virus

which can be linked to mass strandings. Our environment correspondent Helen Briggs explains how these findings, were made. Scientists have taken to the skies to study the health of whales in the wild. Drones carrying scientific equipment were hovered over the giant ocean mammals to collect samples of their breath as they came up for air. We also went out on boat to collect skin samples. The test revealed vital clues about the health of humpbacks and other whales. Researchers identified for the first time a highly infectious virus, one linked to mass strandings of whales and dolphins worldwide, affecting

the animals in the Arctic. Terry Dawson is Professor of Global Environmental Change at King's College London. The drone technology is a real game changer in the ability to capture the blow samples from the whales and dolphins and through the analysis of those samples, identify those diseases, which obviously have huge impacts on the health and well-being. of the animals and to understand why we're seeing these mass stranding events around the world. Scientists hope this breakthrough will help them to spot other deadly threats to ocean life early before they start to spread. Helen Briggs. Finally, ever since the early days of the Beatles,

Paul McCartney's signature instrument has been the Hofner violin bass guitar. In 1961, the then-18-year-old bought the instrument in Hamburg for around 4,000. $40. And it went on to feature on all of the band's first recordings, earning it the nickname the Beatle bass. It was actually stolen from a van in West London in the 70s and found decades later in an attic in the south of England and reunited with the rock star. But now the manufacturer, which was founded in 1887, is going out of business. Hoffner's filing for insolvency comes at a time when many instrument makers are struggling. Here's Julie Robbins, the CEO of Earthquaker devices. which makes guitar pedals in the U.S.

When I think of Hofner guitars, I think of the Beatles. You know, an iconic European brand. They've been around for more than 100 years, many, many models. A month or so ago, G&L went out of business. That was a big brand that had been around for a long time in the U.S. And I've had about 10 customers in North America. So retail stores go out of business in the last year. There's definitely some really challenging headwinds for our industry.

supply chain issues and tariffs. So for us in the U.S., it's components and things coming in, and for a brand, a European brand like Hoffner, I'm sure they're having difficulty reaching the market, having additional tariffs on everything coming in. On top of that, consumer spending is shifting, especially those spending on non-essentials. There's also been a correction in the market since the pandemic. During the pandemic, people were buying a lot of instruments and accessories because they were at home. You have one and you keep it forever. Another thing is that, you know, music trends are changing. There's a lot more electronic music or other ways of making music and it could reduce the demand for traditional string instruments.

That was Julie Robbins. And that's all from us for now, but there will be a new edition of the Global News podcast later. If you want to comment on this podcast, all the topics covered in it, You can send us an email. The address is Global Podcast at BBC.co.com. You can also find us on X at BBC World Service. Use the hashtag Global NewsPod. This edition was mixed by Chris Lovelock and the producers were Stephanie Zacherson and Chantal Hartel. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Charlotte Gallagher. Until next time. Goodbye.