Tiktok, a popular social media app, was banned in the United States on Jan. 18. Jeopardizing thousands of small businesses, creators, and the free speech of every American user. Many people were left wondering why it would be banned and the majority of people believe that the banning of TikTok is completely unnecessary and simply a ploy for good publicity and higher stocks for the competing business Meta. 

What started the whole discussion was when it was first announced by Donald Trump in 2022 that TikTok needed to be bought by an American buyer. That executive order was blocked but on Jan. 17 2025 the Supreme Court voted to uphold the law that banned TikTok. 

It is thought that Tiktok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance posed a national security risk, so the Supreme Court valued national security over the free speech and opinions of the millions of people on the app.

Millions of users fought for the app as it was such an important part of the lives of the people. It promoted free speech and helped spread critical information.

Important information for the elections, about our leaders, foreign wars, and how to simply stay safe in your own country was all information that was spread throughout the app to help the people who needed it most. It spread the word so that no one was naive to what is happening in the world.

Not only was the app a platform for voices to be heard it also helped thousands of people who began small businesses. It helped them reach audiences from all over the world, easy access to sell through TikTok shops, and it helped increase their sales tremendously. 

The biggest part of the app was simply the fun and joy it spread through the millions of accounts. It made millions of people laugh and was used as a source of information to learn many different things Senior Stephanie Casimiro explains, “I think people were truly able to get along with one another regardless of not knowing each other through trends.” She continues saying “I personally would use it as a way to guide me to make new recipes, like making my own cheesecake.” 

Tiktok should remain accessible to people in the United states as it is a positive force in people’s lives. There are many more serious issues happening that the government should be focusing on instead of banning an app. As Casimiro puts it “I think that the Tiktok ban was a scheme to get popularity for the government, but there are many other more serious political issues happening in our country right now.”