On January 18th, Tik Tok, the popular entertainment app used by approximately 170 million Americans, went dark. Just hours before midnight, the app became unusable to Americans and showed a message explaining that the platform was unavailable in the region. This is the result of a long-lasting effort by Congress to ban the app based on speculation of security concerns, particularly that the app allowed the Chinese government access to American user data.
Many Americans were confused and upset, not understanding why an app that has been a major social media since 2016 was suddenly dangerous and about to disappear from their day-to-day lives. Some called it an infringement of free speech and self-expression. When questioned about the possibility of vetoing the bill, the then-president Joe Biden stated that the fate of the bill would be left in the hands of the soon-to-be inaugurated Donald Trump. The bill was passed, and the app was subsequently banned on January 18th.
The ban lasted less than a day. The next day, users slowly began to be able to scroll on the app again. A message popped up on the app welcoming American users back. The message also stated that the app was back online “as a result of President Trump’s efforts.” So, what does this really mean for American Tik Tok Users?
Trump promised that after his inauguration, he would pass an executive order pausing the federal ban immediately. It worked, as after only 12 hours of the ban, American users had access again. While it is not a permanent fix, it has halted to federal ban. However, this is only for users who already have the app downloaded. This means that the app is no longer available on the app store, so any Americans who deleted the app or buy a phone without it previously installed will not be able to redownload it. The options for a long-term fix to the ban would be to pass a law reversing the old one, which is no easy task, or sell the app.
Trump’s sudden action against the ban confused many Americans. The bill itself was actually introduced and pushed by Trump in 2020. The switch in stance on Tik Tok’s existence has led some Americans to believe the entire debacle was just a large political ploy to gain the support of younger Americans. Because Tik Tok is such a widely used app by the American public, Trump pausing the ban has led to him being labeled as the “savior” of Tik Tok. If this was the intention, it was successful. Beloved Tik Tok users have been thanking Trump for preventing the ban from lasting. Whether or not the entire Tik Tok ban- and almost immediate resurgence- was a ploy for political gain, the ban was still paused and may or may not be pushed by Congress again.
