TikTok Influencers Are Losing Their Minds As Ban Set To Go Into Effect This Sunday

Are we in the final days of TikTok? A law set to go into effect on Sunday, January 19 could soon spell the end of one of the most popular social media apps in the country. Back in April 2024, President Joe Biden signed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, a bill that would ban TikTok operations in the United States unless parent company ByteDance sold the app to a US-approved company. The ban was a result of concerns that have been around for years surrounding ByteDance's collection and sharing of user information and data with the Chinese government. Critics have called the app a national security threat, and both the federal government and many state governments have banned TikTok on government-issued cell phones. ByteDance has repeatedly indicated that they have no intention of selling TikTok, though in recent days it's been rumored that Elon Musk and YouTuber Mr. Beast could end up buying the app in a last-minute ditch to save it. And the company, as well as content creators, filed a lawsuit in an attempt to stop the ban. A federal appeals court upheld the ban last year, and it's now in the hands of the Supreme Court to decide whether to issue an injunction to stop the law from going into effect or to find that it's unconstitutional as the plaintiffs are claiming. But if that doesn't happen, the app will officially be banned on Sunday - with TikTok announcing this week that they plan to shut down in the United States if the law goes into effect, despite the fact that they could still legally operate but wouldn't be able to send updates to users or offer the app in Apple or Google stores. Many users of TikTok are scrambling to find an alternative before the ban goes into effect, and ironically, many are now using the Chinese app RedNote - although they're quickly finding out the limits of free speech over in China as they get banned for posting LGBT content or derogatory comments about the Chinese government. Have a feeling that one's not going to last long with American creators. And with no clear plan in place for how to move forward if the ban goes into effect, TikTok creators aren't taking it well. Of course the app has provided a massive platform for everyone from artists to influencers, allowing many to quit their jobs and make a career out of being a TikTok star or supplement their income with their videos. So the prospect of losing that income is hitting a lot of creators pretty hard - and like any good TikTok star, they're posting their meltdowns for everybody to see: https://twitter.com/AmericaPapaBear/status/1879629911767540001 https://www.tiktok.com/@chelseabarbeeworld/video/7458373249664175406 https://www.tiktok.com/@medusaslittleangel/video/7460386904890936618 https://www.tiktok.com/@vans.inthesand/video/7458455751963774254 https://www.tiktok.com/@emilyesenn/video/7460230542710148394 Of course there are a lot of people who don't have a lot of sympathy for these creators, telling them that now they're going to have to get a real job now that they're not able to just post videos on the internet all day, which is really setting off a bunch of influencers. https://www.tiktok.com/@bran__flakezz/video/7451392461139709215 But I'm not convinced that the app's actually going to get banned anyway. Incoming President Donald Trump has expressed interest in saving TikTok, and even asked the Supreme Court to delay the ban until he gets into office so that he can work with everybody involved to come up with a solution. He's also mentioned issuing an executive order on his first day in office (the day after the ban goes into effect) that would delay its implementation. So whether or not the Supreme Court comes along and saves TikTok, I have a feeling that it's not going away any time soon (at least not for good). Now, whether you think that's good news or not probably depends on whether you post on TikTok or not. I don't really post much on there, but I do enjoy scrolling mindlessly through the app. I can't tell you how many hours I've spent watching Nate the Hoof Guy teach me about how to trim a cow's hooves and spot problems with them (something I will never use in my real life), or laughed at people doing dumb shit. Will I miss doing that if TikTok goes away? Sure. But am I going to be upset about it? Not really. TikTok has obviously given us some incredible artists as well. Guys like Zach Top started out posting on TikTok. Country artist Hannah Dasher racked up millions of followers on TikTok with her "Stand By Your Pan" cooking videos during COVID, and has since gone on to open for artists like Reba and Hank Williams Jr. But then you also have some pretty shitty artists who have managed to get record deals just because they built up a following on TikTok, and now they're not able to sell out shows or actually have success with their music. TikTok makes everyone think they're a star, and there are always going to be people out there willing to take advantage of those people. So at this point, all we can really do is wait and see whether the ban actually goes into effect on January 19, and if it does, whether Trump decides to overturn it after taking office the next day. And until then, we can just enjoy the meltdowns from the "influencers" who apparently have no valuable skills other than posting on TikTok. On the bright side, if TikTok does get banned, we won't have to hear country music like this again: https://www.tiktok.com/@lanlawmusic/video/7450295598026067231