Many talks have been held between our government and the owners of TikTok, discussing the potential ban of social media apps in the United States. There is also discussion of deals in the works to take the app under U.S. control, though it is unclear if this will occur. The potential of the Chinese company siphoning sensitive data from its users has shaken the previous and current administration enough to warrant a response. Whether this is all true is beyond my knowledge, but one certainty is that people’s attachment to the app will be the undoing of any ban.
TikTok has had a large following for years now, with millions of users in America alone. The site’s main demographic is young adults and teenagers, but even children have found their way onto the site to post and watch video reels of dancing and whatever trends are popular. Influencers and businesses have even taken up on the site to promote themselves and boost their followings. TikTok simply has too much of a stranglehold on the populace for it to go away without a fight.
This attachment isn’t very far-fetched when looking at other social media sites. Facebook has been condemned for its content policies and user privacy concerns, yet it is still considered the largest platform globally. The sad truth is that most users don’t care what kind of data is being stolen since most sites seem to use it for personalized advertisements and recommendations. If it doesn’t cost them financially, users will likely ignore it in favor of staying connected with friends and sharing funny videos. If our government is truly run by the people, then the people will be more in favor of taking ownership of the site over banning it.
