A day before President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated, a ban on the popular social media app TikTok is set to begin. Although he’s supported such a ban in the past, Trump is now reportedly considering attempts to save the app.
Here’s what we know.
According to the Pew Research Center, a third of U.S. adults use TikTok. Use is more common for American adults under 30 – 59% of that demographic has said they use it. About six-in-ten teens ages 13 to 17 use the app, Pew said. Audacy recently reported that many Americans even younger than that use the app, despite age limits.
TikTok is a video-based app owned by ByteDance, a Chinese company.
While scrolling through the app, users will find a variety of content, from makeup tutorials and snack reviews to viral dances.
Since TikTok launched in 2016, there have been concerns about it. These include concerns linked to other social media apps regarding both misinformation and mental health issues. However, TikTok stands out due to concerns that the Chinese government could force ByteDance to provide it information about Americans provided through the app.
Last spring, President Joe Biden signed a law that would trigger a ban on TikTok if ByteDance does not sell it by Jan. 19. This legislation has been challenged and the U.S. Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in the case.
“We believe the Court will find the TikTok ban unconstitutional so the over 170 million Americans on our platform can continue to exercise their free speech rights,” said TikTok in a Dec. 18 press release.
CNN noted that, while Trump – a creator of viral dances himself – backed a potential TikTok ban during his first term in office, he had changed his tune by this summer. He asked the Supreme Court last month to stay the law that would ban it.
This week, The Washington Post reported that Trump “is exploring unconventional ways to rescue the Chinese-owned video app from a nationwide ban, arguing it will help him reach an adoring audience throughout his second term.” It said that the incoming president is considering issuing an executive order once he’s in the White House to suspend the ban for 60 to 90 days.
That would give his administration time to negotiate another solution, the Post said. CNN also reported that “sources familiar with the plans” confirmed that the Trump administration is considering a potential deal with a U.S. buyer.
Last month, MarketPlace reported that Frank McCourt, the former LA Dodgers owner and founder of Project Liberty, was interested in buying the app. According to the Wall Street Journal, Chinese officials have discussed possibly selling TikTok to Trump ally Elon Musk (who already owns the social media platform X) and YouTuber Mr. Beast has also indicated he’s willing to buy it.
Even though Trump has indicated he’ll step up for TikTok, what he can actually do is foggy, according to Reuters. Alan Rozenshtein, a law professor at the University of Minnesota, explained why in a recent interview with Audacy.
“He can do a couple of things, but I’m not sure any of them will really help,” said the professor. “He can declare that the Department of Justice won’t enforce the law, but the law is not actually directly enforced against TikTok. It’s actually enforced against the app stores like Apple and Google and the cloud service providers like Oracle that host TikTok.”
Rozenshtein said those entities will likely comply with the law. He also said that the possibility of ByteDance disinvesting from TikTok is also shaky.
“The problem with a divestment is not that there aren’t American buyers who would buy TikTok, but that it’s not in the Chinese government’s interest to allow ByteDance to sell TikTok. And I don’t think that Trump really change that,” he said.
CNN also said that Trump has been relatively quiet on the TikTok front and may ultimately decide to sit the fight out. Reuters reported Thursday that: “The Trump transition team did not have an immediate comment. Trump has said he should have time after taking office to pursue a ‘political resolution’ of the issue.”
“TikTok declined to comment on the possibilities Trump or Biden could take action to save the app,” said CNN. A White House official told Reuters Wednesday that President Joe Biden had no plans to intervene.
So, what would happen if Trump isn’t able to save TikTok for U.S. users?
“TikTok’s lawyer said that tick tock would, quote unquote, go dark,” said Rozenshtein. “But I think… I’m actually doubtful that that’s going to happen.”
What will likely happen is the removal of the app from app stores. Those who have already downloaded the app should still be able to access it, at least when the ban kicks in on Sunday.
“But as the weeks and months go on, it’ll become more and more inconvenient to access TikTok and service might get worse,” Rozenshtein added. “And presumably at that point, some percentage of TikTok’s users will migrate to the competitor platforms like Instagram reels or YouTube shorts.”
Lawmakers this week also announced the “Extend the TikTok Deadline Act” that would delay the Jan. 19 deadline by which ByteDance must sell TikTok by an additional 270 days, if passed.