It’s official: TikTok is no longer available in the US. Congress passed a bill in April requiring the app to divest from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, or face a nationwide ban on Jan. 19. TikTok didn’t even wait until today. Hours before Saturday turned to Sunday, the app denied US users access to videos on the platform. A message popped up: “We regret that a U.S. law banning TikTok will take effect on January 19 and force us to make our services temporarily unavailable. We’re working to restore our service in the U.S. as soon as possible.”
Originally, it was believed current users would still be able to access the app but wouldn’t get updates or bug fixes, eventually rendering the platform obsolete. Yet the company announced late Friday on X that the US version would “go dark” on Jan. 19 unless the Biden administration could guarantee that app stores like Apple and Google wouldn’t be penalized for offering TikTok’s services in the US.
But wait! After users refreshed their screens last night, a different message showed: “A law banning TikTok has been enacted. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now.” The second paragraph, however, is the interesting part: “We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!”
And guess who will be seated on the dais at the incoming president’s inauguration tomorrow? Shou Zi Chew, TikTok’s CEO. Maybe Trump knows something we don’t. For now, here’s how we got here.
Why TikTok?
In April 2024, President Joe Biden signed the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, giving TikTok an ultimatum: Divest from its Chinese parent company or face a US ban. The deadline is today. Though the vote in Congress was widely supported on both sides, many lawmakers were recently scrambling to find ways to save the app. Maybe they fear public backlash, or perhaps, deep down, they love the app and never thought the matter would get this far.
TikTok seems determined not to divest and has publicly stated, among rumors of billionaire buyers like Elon Musk just waiting for a pen, that it is not for sale. It did, however, challenge the law a few weeks ago. As Liberty Nation News highlighted, it “filed an emergency application at the Supreme Court, asking the justices to put the potential Jan. 19 ban on hold until the company could get its First Amendment claims sorted out. The Court agreed, expedited a hearing, and scheduled it for Jan. 10.” Then the president-elect filed an amicus brief, asking the Court to postpone the ban until he returned to the White House, but to no avail. The justices heard arguments last week and ruled unanimously on Friday morning that the divest-or-ban law would stand.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, during oral arguments, discussed the potential for China to use TikTok’s immense data collection “to turn people, to blackmail people, people who, a generation from now, will be working in the F.B.I. or the C.I.A. or in the State Department.” Other justices also expressed concern. “It’s about the data control,” said Justice Sonya Sotomayor.
Some say the ban violates the right to free speech. They either don’t see the app’s Chinese connection as a threat or believe their right to express themselves is more important. Those on the opposite side argue the internet has plenty of options to post messages and videos. As such, they claim no rights are being violated.
What Now?
President-elect Trump has apparently been looking at unconventional ways to keep the app running in the US, even considering a potential executive order on Monday to delay the ban’s enforcement for 60 or 90 days, though some question whether he even has the authority to do so. President Biden could’ve issued a 90-day extension had TikTok shown the administration it had a realistic plan to divest. Otherwise, according to the sell-or-ban law, the president does not have the authority to postpone it.
Trump hasn’t publicly stated how he might handle the situation, but on Friday, he posted a message on his platform, Truth Social: “The Supreme Court decision was expected, and everyone must respect it. My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I must have time to review the situation. Stay tuned!”
In the meantime, numerous people are flocking over to Substack, a platform that initially started as a place for writers but has since branched out to include short-form posts and videos, making it a viable replacement for TikTok. More intriguing, though, is the fact that hundreds of thousands of Americans seeking a TikTok alternative have downloaded an app called RedNote – or Xiaohongshu, in Chinese, which translates literally to “little red book.” It’s also a Chinese-owned company, reportedly funded by the provincial government. Users can share videos and text-based posts and are offered content recommendations via an algorithm meant to keep them scrolling, much like TikTok. RedNote has been the most downloaded free app since Tuesday. Will it too soon face a ban in the US?
If the federal government has already banned one app controlled by China, what’s to stop it from doing so again? And if it doesn’t act against RedNote, won’t that make the TikTok ban look like a vendetta against one company? Suppose this app is banned, too. Then what? After RedNote gets axed, how long until the US government tries to eliminate Elon Musk’s X? – “for our safety, of course!”
