TikTok will “go dark” on Sunday unless outgoing President Joe Biden assures the app won’t shut down following the Supreme Court’s ruling to uphold the ban.
The Supreme Court plans to ban the app from US citizens unless it is sold by its China-based parent company amid a row over a risk to national security.
170 million American users are anxiously waiting to see what will happen next in the ongoing saga of TikTok’s gradual demise. Content creators are worried about their livelihoods, while regular users are concerned about free speech and restrictions placed on access to the resources, education, and entertainment that TikTok provides.
In April, Biden signed a law that would ban TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, unless it is sold within a year.
In a statement, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said: “TikTok should remain available to Americans, but simply under American ownership or other ownership that addresses the national security concerns identified by Congress in developing this law.”
On Friday TikTok insisted that “unless the Biden Administration immediately provides a definitive statement to satisfy the most critical service providers ensuring non-enforcement, unfortunately TikTok will be forced to go dark on January 19.”
President Biden then said he would not enforce the ban for the few remaining hours he is in office, leaving it up to his successor Donald Trump to decide what to do when he enters the White House on Monday.
The president-elect, who boasts 14.7 million followers on the app, has previously vowed to “save” TikTok. Posting on his own social media platform, Truth Social, just before the latest Supreme Court decision was reached, the GOP leader said his recent discussions with Chinese leader Xi Jinping included TikTok.
“The call was a very good one for both China and the USA,” Trump explained. “It is my expectation that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately. We discussed balancing Trade, Fentanyl, TikTok, and many other subjects. President Xi and I will do everything possible to make the World more peaceful and safe!”
Trump later said the Supreme Court decision was “expected, and everyone must respect it, adding: “My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I must have time to review the situation. Stay tuned!”
ByteDance has repeatedly refuted notions of selling TikTok to keep it alive. There are potential investors on the scene, though, including Trump’s ex-Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and tycoon Frank McCourt.
McCourt’s Project Liberty announced it, alongside unnamed partners, has pitched to take over TikTok’s US operations. McCourt said his team is “ready to work with the company and President Trump to complete a deal.”
There are murmurings that enforcing the law might push ByteDance to rethink. Last week, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, representing Biden’s Democratic government before the Supreme Court, questioned whether the possibility of a sale could lead to a 90-day grace period for TikTok even after the law is implemented.
Through it all, the Supreme Court has clarified the law does not violate the apps’ or users’ First Amendment rights.
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