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One of the main fears regarding TikTok’s growing influence in the United States was not that the controlling entity behind the social media company, ByteDance, was already feeding data to Chinese President Xi Jinping, but rather that they’re beholden to him and could theoretically decide one day to hand over the private data of millions of Americans to the Chinese government.
But, despite incoming President Trump being the one who proposed the ban in the first place, he’s now changed his stance, shifting from TikTok’s number-one critic to the man who’s just resurrected it.
TikTok is more than just a plaything for powerful, often untrustworthy men. For countless Americans, its razor-sharp algorithm has fostered communities, grown businesses, and provided an informative and educational platform where people connect with the real lives of peers across the nation. Yet, for Trump, the app has always existed in binary terms: does it say good things about him, or does it say bad things about him?
It might seem absurd that so many businesses rest on the whims of a man with such a limited worldview. But in his grand declaration of TikTok’s return, Trump explicitly stated, “Americans deserve to see our exciting Inauguration on Monday.” The idea of any leader reviving TikTok purely to appear on as many screens as possible would be unimaginable — unless, of course, we’re talking about Trump. It appears the platform has not yet escaped its precarious position of existing at the mercy of someone who can arbitrarily decide its fate and role within the community.
His announcement hasn’t been as well-received as he might have expected, with many quick to remind him that he was the one who orchestrated TikTok’s shutdown in the first place. Business Insider reports that as early as 2019, Mark Zuckerberg was already meeting with Trump to raise concerns about his Chinese competitors, alleging that they posed a threat to American businesses.
It’s unlikely Zuckerberg was referring to a threat to small American businesses thriving on TikTok, but rather to mega-corporations like his formerly trustworthy platform Meta. Regardless, Trump took the bait and began the process of banning TikTok. Yet, during his campaign, a surge of supporters on the platform led him to openly promise that, if elected, he would save TikTok because he’s “now a star” on it.
Some users on X have already called him out, with one highlighting “the switch-up” of Trump acting as though he was never against TikTok.
Another user shared headlines of Trump’s previous declarations to ban TikTok seemingly for posterity.
A third gave a firm reminder that Trump’s newfound support for TikTok is purely political. Posing the question of what might happen if the platform no longer serves his interests.
TikTok has already released a statement on X thanking President Trump for his assistance, with the app quickly returning to full functionality. For now, calamity has been averted as Trump extends the timeline for the ban, allowing more time to find an American company to purchase 50% of TikTok’s U.S. operations.