The uncertainty surrounding the potential U.S. ban on TikTok kept both influencers and users on edge for over four years as lawmakers and judges deliberated the fate of the popular video-sharing app. Recently, the feared moment has arrived, but doubts about TikTok’s future persist.
The Supreme Court’s recent decision upheld a federal law prohibiting the widely loved social media platform from operating starting this Sunday unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance Ltd., sells to an approved buyer. This unanimous ruling concluded a legal battle that weighed national security against free speech rights. Advocates for TikTok, ByteDance, and dedicated users who rely on the platform for entertainment, income, and community argued that the law violated the First Amendment. In contrast, the Biden administration contended that ByteDance’s ownership of TikTok posed a significant threat.
While the Supreme Court decision seemingly closes this chapter of the TikTok saga, uncertainties remain due to the broader geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington. The outgoing administration under President Trump is expected to oversee the law’s enforcement, with the incoming administration planning measures to prevent TikTok from shutting down. The specifics of these measures and their legal implications remain unclear.
Before delving into the political controversies surrounding TikTok, it’s essential to understand its rise as a global cultural phenomenon:
The Rise of TikTok
ByteDance, founded by Chinese entrepreneur Zhang Yiming in 2012, introduced TikTok as an international version of its Chinese platform, Douyin, in 2016. After acquiring the lip-syncing app Musical.ly, ByteDance merged it with TikTok, propelling the app’s popularity worldwide. TikTok’s unique approach, tailoring content to users’ interests, set it apart from other social media platforms, fostering an image of a lighthearted and authentic online space.
TikTok’s popularity surged further during the COVID-19 pandemic, with viral dances and music clips becoming a staple of the platform. The app’s success prompted competitors like Instagram and YouTube to introduce similar features. Despite its success, TikTok faced criticism regarding its Chinese ownership and data privacy concerns, highlighting the complexities of its position in the global tech landscape.
As the debate over TikTok’s future continues, the app’s journey from a niche platform to a global sensation underscores the intricate interplay between technology, culture, and politics in the digital age.
During his first term in office, Trump issued executive orders in 2020 that aimed to ban TikTok and WeChat, Chinese apps that were subsequently blocked by courts. India also banned TikTok, along with other Chinese apps, after a skirmish along the India-China border resulted in casualties on both sides. In 2021, the Biden administration rescinded the Trump-era orders but kept a national security review of TikTok in place by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).
Negotiations between TikTok and the Biden administration took place between January 2021 and August 2022, resulting in a 90-page draft security agreement presented to CFIUS. However, talks eventually stalled, although some meetings occurred in the following months. The proposed agreement involved security inspections of TikTok’s U.S. platform and the restriction of U.S. user data access from China, measures which the company claimed to have partially implemented by routing data through Oracle servers.
TikTok filed a lawsuit to challenge a law requiring it to sell or face a ban, asserting that it had spent over $2 billion on its compliance efforts. The government argued that TikTok’s proposed measures failed to establish sufficient separation between its U.S. operations and China and raised concerns about the platform’s algorithm complexity.
In February 2023, the White House directed federal agencies to remove TikTok from government devices, following similar actions in other countries. Subsequent to a Congressional hearing in March, where TikTok’s CEO reassured lawmakers about user safety, the platform faced increased criticism from Republicans in Washington for allegedly promoting biased content related to the Israel-Palestine conflict, a claim vehemently denied by the company.
Efforts to ban TikTok gained traction in Congress, leading to bipartisan support for legislation that passed both chambers in April. The law required ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, to sell the app within nine months of enactment, with a possible extension if a sale was in progress. The legislation was upheld by a lower court in December, prompting legal challenges from TikTok and content creators.
The day before Donald Trump’s inauguration creates a complex situation. According to regulations, only the incumbent president possesses the authority to implement a 90-day postponement on the prohibition. This can only occur if a potential buyer has taken definitive actions towards finalizing a purchase. Despite assurances from specialists that the application will not vanish from current users’ devices come Sunday, prospective users will encounter obstacles in downloading it, with updates becoming inaccessible. The Department of Justice has underscored in legal documents that this will ultimately result in the application becoming inoperable.
