The clock is ticking for TikTok.
newly elected president donald trump Hinted at a press conference on Monday Making TikTok a Lifeline The January deadline to divest its parent company ByteDance is fast approaching, or it will face a ban on Google and Apple’s app stores.
Trump, 78, quipped that he is fond of the popular video-sharing platform because of its performance with young voters in the 2024 election, which he attributed in part to TikTok.
“We will take a look at TikTok. You know, I have a place of affection in my heart for TikTok,” Trump said during a Monday press conference at Mar-a-Lago, when asked whether he would “stop the ban on TikTok next month.” ‘How are you planning?
“TikTok has had an impact, so we are looking at it,” he said, citing its support among youth.
Later on Monday, Trump also hosted social media platform CEO Shaw Chew at his Palm Beach, Florida, resort. According to CNN,
Trump received 46% of the vote among young voters aged 18 to 29, while Vice President Kamala Harris received 52%. According to the Tufts University Center For information and research on civic learning and participation.
In April, Congress passed bipartisan legislation that effectively forced ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a ban from the top app stores. President Biden signed it into law.
Driving the divestment bill were concerns about ByteDance’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and a national security surveillance law on the books in China.
Experts and lawmakers alike feared Beijing was gaining access to vast amounts of US users’ browsing history, biometric identifiers, location data and more.
There were also concerns about the CCP using TikTok as a propaganda tool in the US.
Ironically, during his first administration, Trump signed an executive order to block the popular video-sharing site, but a court later struck down that move.
However, after some time, he warmed up to the stage Efforts of billionaire Jeff Yass To end the disinvestment policy.
Trump had previously argued that killing TikTok could be a boon for Facebook, which he once called “the enemy of the people.” He has also broadly said that the ban on TikTok will reduce competition among social media companies.
Recently, a Federal appeals court supported As the disinvestment law comes into force, TikTok and its parent company are eyeing a possible appeal to the US Supreme Court.
ByteDance had a deadline of January 19, 2025 to comply with the divestiture. Trump is scheduled to be sworn in as the 47th President the next day.
A firm majority of Republicans and even some of Trump’s closest allies such as Secretary of State-designate marco rubio Have supported the law.
“As we’ve said before, we plan to take this case to the Supreme Court, which has an established historical record of protecting Americans’ right to free speech,” a TikTok spokesperson said.
The platform claims to have over 170 million users.
The campaigns of Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris both had a presence on TikTok during the 2024 cycle.
Both campaigns also used the platform after the passage of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Enemy Controlled Applications Act, which included the divestment policy.
(TagstoTranslate)Politics(T)US News(T)China(T)Donald Trump(T)Foreign Policy(T)Social Media(T)TikTok
