President Donald Trump signed an executive order yesterday staving off the enforcement of the TikTok ban-or-sell law, giving the social media app 75 more days to find an American buyer.
TikTok was scheduled to shut down in the U.S. on January 19, one day prior to Mr. Trump’s inauguration, after failing to comply with the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (the Act).
The bipartisan act, which then-President Biden signed into law last April, required TikTok to divest from its Chinese parent to continue operating in the U.S.
Americans couldn’t access TikTok online or on app stores for about 14 hours Sunday morning before the soon-to-be-President took to Truth Social, promising to delay the Act’s enforcement and shield companies from financial liability.
The Act can fine companies $5,000 per person that accesses TikTok past January 19.
Mr. Trump’s promise was enough for web hosts like Oracle and Akami to restored online access to TikTok before his inauguration. But TikTok remains absent from app store platforms like Google and Apple, even after President Trump issued his official order, in apparent deference to lingering legal questions.
Legal experts disagree over whether a President can effectively change or negate a law passed by Congress with an executive order.
Importantly, Mr. Trump’s order doesn’t actually extend the law’s deadline. It orders the Attorney General not to enforce the law for another 75 days. While most seem to agree the President can control what laws the Department of Justice enforces, some argue it doesn’t set a good precedent. Zachary Price, a professor at the University of California College of Law in San Francisco, told The New York Times:
Though many have expressed doubts about the executive order, it’s unclear what group would go so far as to challenge it in court. The edict has broad, bi-partisan appeal. Legislators spent the last week working furiously to get out of the deadline they had created, reluctant to kick 170 million Americans off an admittedly addictive app.
Though few have criticized Mr. Trump’s order directly, those concerned with national security continued discouraging app stores from platforming TikTok. Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton wrote on X:
Mr. Trump’s commitment to finding TikTok an American buyer might mollify security hawks like Cotton enough to keep them from formally challenging the order. The trouble, then, is convincing China to let TikTok go.
Evidence suggests the Chinese government has significant sway over TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance. Some, like South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, have even suggested China’s President, Xi Jingping, holds stock in ByteDance. Either way, the company will be unable to sell TikTok without the People’s Republic of China’s say so.
Yesterday, for the first time, the Chinese government seemed to soften their stance on selling TikTok to an American company.
“For such actions as corporate operations and acquisitions, we always believe they should be decided independently by companies based on market principles,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told reporters in Beijing on Monday.
Your kids might be able to maintain access to TikTok — but should they? Read the articles below to find out why you should think twice about TikTok and other social media platforms.
Additional Articles and Resources
Supreme Court Upholds TikTok Ban
TikTok Scrambles Amid Looming Ban
Plugged In Parent’s Guide to Today’s Technology equips parents to navigate the ever-shifting tech realm.
TikTok Dangerous for Minors — Leaked Docs Show Company Refuses to Protect Kids
Teen Boys Falling Prey to Financial Sextortion — Here’s What Parents Can Do
Instagram’s Sextortion Safety Measures — Too Little, Too Late?
Kid’s Online Safety Act — What It Is and Why It’s a Big Deal
Instagram Content Restrictions Don’t Work, Tests Show
Zuckerberg Implicated in Meta’s Failures to Protect Children
Surgeon General Recommends Warning on Social Media Platforms
‘The Dirty Dozen List’ — Corporations Enable and Profit from Sexual Exploitation
Four Ways to Protect Your Kids from Bad Tech, From Social Psychologist Jonathan Haidt
Parent-Run Groups Help Stop Childhood Smartphone Use
Survey Finds Teens Use Social Media More Than Four Hours Per Day — Here’s What Parents Can Do
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