Performing innocence and integrity

Abstract

This study examines blame avoidance (BA) strategies used by TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew in the 2023 U.S. congressional hearing. Integrating BA framework with speech act theory, the analysis proceeds from manual coding to a comparison of strategies across political parties, followed by a qualitative analysis of the speech acts employed. Results reveal that act-denials were significantly more frequent in responses to Republican members. Aside from literal denial, Chew also used transformative, subjective, and interpretive denials to mitigate political risks and demonstrate innocence. When addressing Democratic inquiries, Chew diverted topics from concrete content regulation failures to abstract corporate effort, commitment, policy, and attitude to construct an image of integrity. The findings suggest that Chew strategically adapts linguistic defenses to partisan contexts, prioritizing the projection of a politically insulated and morally upright persona over mere factual rebuttal.