Since TikTok merged with its competitor Musical.ly in 2017, the app has been perpetually scrutinized and its survival has been perpetually threatened from both sides of the aisle. Citing concerns about the Chinese government accessing Americans’ data through the app, former President Biden signed a bill demanding that TikTok be sold to a U.S.-approved buyer or face a nationwide ban.
The current administration still threatens to ban it if a U.S.-approved buyer doesn’t take over from its Chinese owners ByteDance. The goal of the takeover, however, has seemingly shifted: Trump has cozied up with TikTok’s CEO, as he simultaneously turned many other social media moguls to his side, those whose apps have now decreased moderation for hate speech under his permission. As a result, many worry that the app may be pressured to become a right-wing propaganda machine if Trump’s acquisition plan goes through. Others share the views of the administration, concerned about its Chinese ownership and any potential CCP propaganda that might consequently be pushed. Better just get rid of it and be done with the whole mess, right?
However, irrespective of whether you are worried about Chinese or American alt-right propaganda, TikTok isn’t your real enemy. A lack of media literacy education is. If TikTok was banned, a whole vehicle for social change would be eliminated, issues of user privacy would still exist and national security might be even worse.
Instead of attacking a single head of the social media hydra, we should prioritize legislation that protects user data, as well as accelerate media literacy education in schools. As long as we stay informed and think critically, the app has proven to unite global voices in a way that mainstream media can’t.
TikTok has already played a pivotal role in social movements. The Black Lives Matter movement that gained traction in 2020 was largely popularized on TikTok. Recent protests in Nepal against political elitism and corruption began with a call to action from a 23-year-old activist on TikTok. A skull symbol that served as a symbol of liberation in the 1997 Japanese manga, “One Piece,” has circulated across nations, appearing in recent Indonesian, Filipino and Nepalese protests, representing the transnational solidarity that the platform has given us.
In this current time of political uncertainty and isolation, the decentralized, globalized and participatory nature of TikTok forges interpersonal connections that no billionaire-owned news broadcast ever could. When we learn about liberation in other countries, we learn how to achieve it in ours. Furthermore, when media companies are being increasingly consolidated, spaces for local and diverse voices are diminishing. This app allows us to hold onto the independent voices that are not necessarily accessible via Disney+, Netflix, AppleTV or Amazon Prime. The revolution will not be turned into an HBO mini-series.
Similarly, mutual aid has helped address the root causes of our systemic challenges by filling those gaps and meeting individual needs in the fight against systemic inequality, and TikTok provides a vehicle for it. Every day, Palestinian families in Gaza needing money for transportation away from their devastated homes come up on my For You Page, and I’m able to regularly contribute a portion of my weekly budget to their GoFundMes. TikTok’s powerful algorithm allows users to dive deeper into social causes than other apps because it relentlessly pushes similar content, making it the perfect vehicle for building momentum in movements.
Banning the app would eliminate a misunderstood force for good.
The administration’s motivation to ban TikTok is to protect Americans’ data privacy in the name of national security; however, just banning TikTok would barely make a dent in protecting online users. When its Chinese ownership is its only difference from other apps, banning only TikTok would likely heighten tensions between the U.S. and China. This sounds antithetical to national security to me.
According to Palleon Lin, a researcher at the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab, “Governments should try to better protect user information, instead of focusing on one particular app without good evidence.” Instead of being selective about which apps to ban to “protect privacy” while endorsing the CEOs of others, Trump should introduce nationwide legislation across all apps to protect user data.
But other Big Tech companies that use the same data tracking tools are cozying up to Trump. Google and Meta’s CEOs were both seated front row at the President’s inauguration. Furthermore, Jeff Bezos, as the owner of Amazon, runs one of the few tech firms that doesn’t directly trade in information. Yet, he now owns and is increasingly involved with one of the nation’s leading newspaper outlets, The Washington Post. Bezos’ acquisition, following the playbook of Rupert Murdoch, has established mainstream media as just another victim of the Big Tech oligarchy.
Moreover, any concerns of propaganda on the app could be better addressed with the same media literacy education that’s sorely needed in this biased media oligarchy. As AI becomes more prevalent, our generation is spending less time using their brains and simply having whatever answers they want handed to them. As a largely unmoderated social media app becomes the dominant form of communication, more and more people have begun taking what they see online at face value.
However, it isn’t too late to save our critical thinking skills. Some states have already taken action, and while their efforts are a good start, to effectively combat propaganda as soon as possible, we need to accelerate the process.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law incorporating media literacy instruction at every grade level in California in 2023. Delaware, New Jersey and Texas have the same requirements. If we continue on this path in education, as well as emphasize the importance of teaching media literacy skills when raising children, the generations to follow will be equipped with the skills to deeply engage, discuss and challenge the content they come across on apps like TikTok.
TikTok was never the real problem. If schools were required to teach media literacy more and earlier, we’d be able to see that those in power who say they’re protecting our data privacy and national security might not quite know what they’re doing, either. If they did, they’d protect our user data nationwide instead. Holding onto TikTok means holding onto the voices that matter.
Nicole Teh SC ’27 is from Hong Kong and has now experienced two TikTok bans in two countries. She’s learned that a high-quality VPN and taking out your SIM card still lets the app work if it’s banned in the country you are in.
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