It brought tears and fears to millions of users throughout the country. On January 18, 2025, TikTok was shut down for 15 hours. Although it was brought up with the help of President Trump by January 19, many people still have mixed opinions on the ban.
TikTok shouldn’t get banned. Without TikTok it would take away most people’s ability to continue to make incomes off the app, drive users to other Chinese owned apps, and deny creators and users a voice on topics that matter to them.
Banning it would be taking away most people’s jobs such as small businesses. Many people who work with social media use something called the creator fund which helps them make money through their posts and helps them sell things, such as clothing and jewelry, that might interest people.
On top of this, many creators and users of TikTok used alternative apps when TikTok was banned, like Rednote and Lemon8. However, this did not really help solve the problem. Like TikTok, both apps are from Chinese owned companies. Lemon8 is actually owned by the same company as TikTok!
Although national security is a strong argument, TikTok CEO, lawyers, and TikTok users and creators have been fighting an argument saying banning the app would be violating the First Amendment, which is the freedom of speech and press. Many creators and users use the app to share their views and opinions about topics they are passionate about.
(Image by Nitish Gupta from Pixabay)
This whole TikTok conversation started in April of 2024 when a law was passed by Congress and signed by former President Joe Biden. The TikTok CEO was given 9 months to sell the app to an American host. According to NBC News, “ U.S officials have repeatedly warned that TikTok threatens national security because the Chinese government could use it to spy on Americans or weapons to make the use public by amplifying or supporting certain content.” In December of 2024 there was still no sale, so Congress set an official ban date to January 19, 2025. Even though back in 2020, Trump was threatening to ban the app during his first term, it looks like he changed his mind as TikTok praised the president for bringing it back.
It was the right decision to not ban the app. Without TikTok many would have lost their way to speak out on topics and opinions, make a living, and just find other apps, many of which are Chinese owned, to turn to.
