For almost the whole second half of 2020, former US President Donald Trump sought to ban TikTok in the country. Other Chinese-owned apps, like WeChat, were also targeted.
The US isn’t the first place where the popular app, which has been downloaded over 1.5 billion times since 2017, has caused controversy. The platform has been a talking point in other Asian countries, as well as in Europe.
Now that the Trump administration has handed power over to President Joe Biden, one big question remains: is TikTok getting banned in America? Here’s what to know about the topic…
TikTok Ban in USA: How Did Everything Begin?
The history of TikTok’s US controversy can be traced back to early 2019. In February of that year, ByteDance—which had integrated Musical.ly into the TikTok—paid a fine worth $5.7 million to the US Federal Trade Commission.
ByteDance’s fine was ordered after the platform was revealed to have unlawfully collected children’s personal information.
Later that year, TikTok’s Musical.ly acquisition was investigated by the country’s Committee on Foreign Investment.
Fast forward to July 2020, and the Trump administration’s disapproval of TikTok became clearer. Trump also suggested he could ban TikTok to punish China for the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan.
At the end of July 2020, Trump said that he intended to ban TikTok. And in August, an Executive Order was signed in an attempt to move forward with this.
Why Does Trump Dislike TikTok?
Trump’s main argument for wanting to ban Chinese-owned apps was because he said that they were a threat to national security. In the past, his team had also sanctioned companies like Huawei and ZTE.
According to the former president, there was a risk of American users’ data ending up in the Chinese government’s hands. TikTok has more than 80 million users in the US, mostly aged between 16 and 24.
TikTok argued that this wouldn’t happen. According to the company, US users’ data is stored in America. This data is then backed up in Singapore.
Did TikTok Get Banned in Other Countries?
The US isn’t the only country where TikTok has divided opinions. India banned the platform in June 2020, as well as other Chinese-owned apps. Similar to the US, it cited security concerns. However, a border dispute between China and India was also suspected as a source of tension.
In Europe, TikTok has also caused controversy. The European Union (EU) launched a probe in 2020 after concerns were expressed over the company’s use of minors’ information. The platform has since announced its intention to store UK and European data at an Irish data center.
TikTok has also been controversial in countries in Pakistan, Indonesia, and a few other countries.
The Outcome: Why Was TikTok Not Banned?
So why has TikTok not been banned? Trump never had the power to take TikTok down on his own.
In October 2020, a US judge chose to block Trump’s efforts to stop users in the US from downloading TikTok. This came after influencers on the platform took legal action against the former president.
Two months later, a second judge—Carl Nichols—also chose not to side with Trump over the ban. According to Nichols, Trump breached his emergency economic powers when he pushed for the app’s removal from the US.
Nichols mentioned that if TikTok was banned in the country, users would join a competitor. If this happened, the harm caused to TikTok could affect its future as a business.
Three weeks after the December 2020 verdict, the Trump administration appealed the decision to block the executive order.
When the decision was appealed, no new arguments were put forward to explain why. According to court officials, it was also improbable that any deal could be finalized before Trump’s presidency ended.
January 2021: TikTok Removes Multiple Trump Videos
Following the riot at the US Capitol in January 2021, TikTok banned all videos using the hashtags “#patriotparty” and “#stormthecapitol”. Videos involving speeches and footage of Trump riling the crowd were also removed.
All content deemed misinformation before and during the 2020 election has also been taken down. TikTok also stepped up its policy against hateful content while also removing videos considered hate speech.
However, Trump-related content is not entirely banned from TikTok. Some videos of the riots have stayed up, but only those from news outlets or expressing that the violence was unacceptable. Opt-in screens for these videos have also been added.
Counter-speech videos also remain on TikTok, as do those that challenge Trump’s election-rigging claims.
So Is TikTok Still Getting Banned?
It’s looking increasingly unlikely that TikTok will be banned in the US. While the platform doesn’t know what its status is, no official ban has been approved.
Considering that the Trump administration’s ban appeal included no new evidence or arguments for banning TikTok, the court likely has no reason to change its mind.
TikTok getting banned in the US would realistically depend on whether or not Biden chooses to pursue the issue further.
Biden has spoken about TikTok in the past. The president said it was a “matter of genuine concern” that TikTok had access to Americans’ data. However, he has not signaled much of an intention to continue Trump’s disputes with Chinese-owned companies.
It’s also worth noting that TikTok has made privacy setting changes. At the start of 2021, the app announced that the accounts of everyone between 13 and 15-years-old will be set to private by default. And for users aged up to 18, extra controls would be added compared to adults’ profiles.
Coupling this with the lack of new evidence from the Trump administration about why TikTok should be banned, the court might take this into consideration.
You Can Still Enjoy TikTok in the US
TikTok’s viral videos have entertained millions of users across the US and even helped some influencers launch a career. With Trump’s time as leader now over, and TikTok still looking to sell its US entities to a company in the country, the app looks like it’s here to stay.