Official announcements from ByteDance or the U.S. government

Trump Favors Keeping TikTok in US Amid Billions of Views, Challenges to ByteDance's January 19 Ban

Dec 22, 2024, 07:31 PM

President-elect Donald Trump has expressed support for allowing TikTok to continue operating in the United States temporarily, citing the platform's significant role in his presidential campaign where he received billions of views. Speaking at AmericaFest, an event organized by the conservative group Turning Point in Phoenix, Arizona, Trump indicated that he might reconsider the ban on TikTok, which is set to take effect on January 19, one day before he takes office. The U.S. Senate passed a law in April requiring TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest the app due to national security concerns. TikTok's owners are challenging this law in court, with the U.S. Supreme Court scheduled to hear arguments on January 10. The Justice Department argues that Chinese control of TikTok poses a threat to national security, while TikTok claims its content recommendation engine and user data are stored in the U.S. on cloud servers operated by Oracle. Trump's comments suggest a potential shift in policy regarding TikTok's operations in the U.S., although it remains unclear how he would reverse the Senate's divestiture order.