Tiktok tunes terminated?

OPINION: Cancel Culture on TikTok is Irrelevant

"So, what's happening now with TikTok?"

TikTok, a popular social media platform used by many, has gone through major changes when a large portion of its music was taken off of the platform, and now it is facing a permanent ban from the United States altogether. 

After the COVID-19 pandemic took the world by storm, TikTok was able to give people comfort and serve as a way for others to connect through the internet when everyone had to be isolated from the outside world and no one knew what would happen in the future. The app is owned by a Chinese company called ByteDance, and this is where the U.S. Government sees there being problems with TikTok. 

The threat of shutting TikTok down was made for reasons relating to national security. There has been a history of concerns regarding ByteDance because government officials fear that the app is being used by the Chinese government to gather sensitive data. The U.S. government is not very comfortable with American citizens’ data being exposed to another country.

According to the article “Biden Administration Signs off on TikTok Ban Over National Security Concerns, App Could Be De-listed in 2025,” on the website cpomagazine.com, “The Chinese government has accessed American data or directly threatened national security using the app; the government correctly points out that this could be done without anyone knowing about it.”

The U.S. gave ByteDance an ultimatum: The Chinese-owned company has to either sell TikTok to another company, or TikTok will no longer be available to U.S. citizens. According to the Associated Press, Tiktok is restricted to government officials in Canada and unavailable in many European countries. With this being said, the U.S. is considering being included, but what do McIntosh students think?

For McIntosh junior, Tishe Ajayi, has had some thoughts about the conflict that favors the app being banned. 

“I actually think it’s a good thing, TikTok promotes brain rot and is making our  generation dumber. With the app being banned it will honestly make our lives better,” Ajayi said. 

For student Naomi Simeon, she is against the bill being passed for TikTok’s ban. 

“TikTok is a fun app to use. I use it everyday to share dances that I want to try with my friends. All social media platforms are constantly taking our personal information anyways so I don’t really see the problem,” Simeon said.