The TikTok ban is something that has been lingering around in recent years, but has always been pushed back for one reason or another. Gen Z has remained haunted by this hanging over their heads for years.
The preface of this ban comes from the origin of the company, China. The United States has been teerting around with the idea of banning the application due to the fact that all of the data collected through their algorithm is kept and reported back to China. It became a major issue when TikTok launched the “TikTok shop” in September of 2023.Â
Parliament’s fears grew more and more when this section of TikTok was launched due to the fact that people would be directly inputting their addresses into the app.Â
Here’s the good news; TikTok won’t be removed from phones. The ban is being placed mainly on Apple and Google app stores. This means that the app won’t be available for downloads/updates. So, if you currently have TikTok on your phone and want to keep it here, leave it alone!Â
The logistical side of TikTok has now also bled into the content side of things too. Many creators on the popular app have been turning to different Chinese based apps and have been promoting them as a nod to the government to not pass the ban in the United States.Â
Many content creators have also been using this as an opportunity to promote their other social media accounts and have even been poking fun at legislators. One creator, Levi Coralynn (@levi_coralynn on TikTok) posted a witty video of her boyfriend and herself. The video includes her dressed in an adorable and elegant cocktail dress, paired with black tights and black pumps. She then is walking in her backyard full of leaves until her boyfriend comes through with a leaf blower clearing the way for her. The screen reads “me on my way to another Chinese app” as he clears the path for her to strut down the “runway”.Â
Other creators started a trend of telling their biggest secrets on the app to “go out with a bang”. One creator, Kaeli Mae (@kaelimaee), who was widely known for making aesthetic ice cubes and showing them in drinks posted a video following this trend. She revealed that she made all of those ice cubes just for the content, and that she doesn’t like ice in her drinks that much! Her followers were shocked by this information and the comments were absolutely flooded with surprised viewers.Â
Most people have been using this ban as an opportunity to poke fun at the government and relate it back to how they have done more work on this ban than they have on crises that are more pressing matters such as the rise in school shootings in previous years. Many creators are using this as a way to take action and stand up for the youth of America.Â
Dealing with a ban is also making many creators reach out to their following to make sure that they understand how appreciated they are. The community that is created through the following can be big or large, but it still is something that is always present.Â
Many creators also are faced with losing their main source of income. TikTok’s creator fund program is the main source of income for many influencers on the app. This being taken away from them so suddenly is the same kind of loss that would face anyone with a normal 9-5 job.Â
A bit of advice for everyone that will be affected if this ban continues to threaten TikTok: find your favorite creators and tell them how much they are appreciated through following their other platforms! Many people who are feeling the loss of TikTok were also around for the fall of Music.ly and some were even around for the downfall of Vine. This could be a similar scenario for many people, so make sure to show support to the creators that you might have been following since 2015 and continue spreading the love that they have shared with you for years through their content!