A Slightly Premature Obituary for TikTok

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Beginning January 19, millions of Americans face losing access to one of the most influential social media platforms in recent history – TikTok. In just over half a decade, this app revolutionized culture, businesses, politics, and the internet at large. It provided a platform for tens of millions of people to express themselves and influence change like never before. No other social platform has made such an impact in such a brief span.

As Musical.ly transformed into TikTok in the summer of 2018 following its acquisition by Bytedance, it was uncertain how this short-form video app would fit into the social media scene. Although Musical.ly was one of the most used social platforms among youngsters, it mainly catered to teenagers creating lip sync videos for their peers. Instagram and YouTube held significant power, and the social media world seemed unchanging.

2019 saw Bytedance invest heavily in promoting TikTok across a wider U.S. audience, and the app rapidly gained popularity. The first significant trend on TikTok emerged just a week after its transition from Musical.ly, known as “Bad Boy Weekend.” This trend involved men transforming into “bad boys” while dancing to the song “Good Girls Bad Guys” by Falling In Reverse. Thus, a temporary phenomenon and a major platform were both established.

Unlike most other social media platforms, TikTok doesn’t focus on followers as the main aspect. Instead of requiring users to follow others, it presents content through an algorithmically personalized “For You” page. On TikTok, your video can become viral without having any followers, and you don’t need to follow anyone to get a customized feed full of content suited to your preferences.

As a passionate admirer of technological advancements, I can’t help but marvel at the transformative impact TikTok has had on the digital world. This platform, in a revolutionary move, granted every user, regardless of their fame or social standing, the power to touch the lives of millions with just one click. It leveled the playing field for content creators, offering an instant pathway for those without a stage to reach masses swiftly.

In contrast to established platforms like Instagram and YouTube, which seemed to be dominated by legacy influencers, TikTok’s innovative algorithm started showcasing fresh talent at an astonishing speed. Quickly, it earned the title of a ‘star factory’, catapulting the careers of hundreds of top Gen Z influencers across numerous genres.

As a devoted fan, I can’t help but marvel at how TikTok has shaken up the tech world. Instead of relying on a traditional feed based on followers, it revolutionized with an algorithmic discovery approach. This innovative move left Silicon Valley CEOs rushing to adapt. The captivating way TikTok delivers content is so addictive that Meta, YouTube, and Snapchat have all tried to emulate its magic within their own platforms by introducing new features. Yet, none have managed to recreate the unique charm of TikTok.

By late 2019, it became evident how powerful TikTok’s algorithm worked, as seen through the surge of Charli D’Amelio and the Hype House, a group of popular Gen Z TikTok personalities residing together in Los Angeles. D’Amelio, the standout member of this group, was initially a teen from Connecticut whose dance videos gained widespread popularity. The Hype House was merely one of several content houses on TikTok that emerged in cities like L.A. and Atlanta. Other notable examples include the Sway House, housing a group of Gen Z male TikTok stars, and the Collab Crib, an all-Black content house in Atlanta.

On TikTok, distinctive features like “duet” and “stitch,” enabling users to collaborate, respond, and interact with one another’s videos, fostered a vibrant community for dialogue. By 2020, this app had become instrumental in politics, transforming into a significant political stage for Generation Z. During the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, it proved essential as it connected and amused people who were otherwise confined at home. Additionally, it functioned as an economic catalyst, empowering numerous Americans to initiate small businesses and careers as content creators while traditional channels were closed off.

As a fervent supporter, I’ve noticed that talks about banning TikTok due to its Chinese ownership began during the initial term of President Trump, although some speculated that the true motivation behind this ban was the politically active young generation flooding the president with pranks like mass-registering for a Tulsa rally that never happened. India enforced a ban on TikTok in June of the same year. Fast forward to autumn 2020, a unified force of hundreds of top Gen Z content creators under the banner “TikTok For Biden” mobilized a significant number of young voters. The app emerged as a platform for climate activism, labor movements, and struggles for racial equality.

By December 2020, TikTok boasted approximately 100 million monthly active users in the United States and was causing a stir in creative industries. It reshaped music, art, fashion, culture, and beauty sectors significantly. It also altered our everyday language, coining novel terms such as “cheugy” and “algospeak”.

As a gamer, I’ve witnessed firsthand how TikTok has been a game-changer for both the music industry and upcoming artists. By seamlessly integrating music into user-created content, this platform has opened up new avenues for discovery, revealing talents that might have slipped through the cracks of the conventional music scene. Artists like Lil Nas X, Olivia Rodrigo, Bella Poarch, and Doja Cat are prime examples of how TikTok can catapult careers to viral fame and chart-topping success.

On TikTok, not only did dance challenges become popular, but it also emerged as a hotspot for fashion and beauty trends, spawning numerous unique styles such as cottagecore, dark academia, coastal cowgirl (these names describe themselves). It became the go-to place for an entire generation to learn about makeup and personal style. The platform’s strong visual emphasis and recommendation system enabled trends to spread at an unprecedented pace, influencing consumer behavior and even affecting decisions in the fashion industry and retail sector. Before you knew it, stores were advertising viral TikTok products on their shelves. A drinking mug from a 110-year-old company called Stanley Tumblr gained massive popularity thanks to TikTok videos promoting the product.

Millions of people found TikTok to be an unexpected source of education with the #LearnOnTikTok hashtag, as educators and experts utilized the platform to impart knowledge across various fields like science, history, finance, and more. The hashtag amassed billions of views, significantly changing the way we consume and disseminate information.

TikTok has significantly influenced both the food and publishing sectors, with FoodTok popularizing new dishes and amateur cooks. This led people to try TikTok-trending recipes such as baked feta pasta and cucumber salads. Simultaneously, #BookTok catapulted previously unnoticed literature into widespread popularity, even prompting bookstore giant Barnes & Noble to create a dedicated display showcasing books that are trending on TikTok. Furthermore, TikTok has helped reduce the stigma around mental health concerns, providing millions with access to valuable healthcare information that often leads to correct diagnoses.

On TikTok, marginalized communities found a welcoming space for connection and mobilization. This platform emerged as a significant social network where individuals from the LGBTQ+ community, those with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups could exchange information and ideas.

2023 rolled around, and TikTok became a pivotal force in our economic landscape. Countless retailers found themselves relying on the TikTok shop as a means to connect with customers, transforming it into an ecommerce platform that was just as significant as a social network within a year. According to Oxford Economics, a research firm, TikTok reportedly contributed $24.2 billion to our country’s GDP and sustained approximately 224,000 American jobs in the same year. As a gamer, I can’t help but marvel at how TikTok has reshaped our economy!

2024 saw a change in Trump’s stance towards the platform he initially aimed to ban. Previously adversarial, he now endorsed it. This shift occurred as influential supporters of Trump on the app amplified his campaign messages during the election.

Although several Democrats, including Joe Biden, were advocating for a ban of the app at that time, Biden himself signed up for TikTok in February 2024, making him the first U.S. president to have an account on the platform. During Kamala Harris’s nomination in the summer of 2024, TikTok significantly contributed to her campaign by popularizing Brat summer memes early on. A famous TikTok music duo, @casadimusic, created viral remixes of politicians’ quotes, which garnered millions of views on clips featuring remixes of phrases like JD Vance’s “I’m a never Trump guy.

On TikTok, a vibrant hub for creativity was established, serving as a bridge that surpassed geographical boundaries and cultural differences. Users from America found common ground with individuals residing in regions like Ukraine and Gaza. However, as an increasing number of young people started utilizing the platform to question mainstream U.S. government perspectives on Israel and Gaza, there were growing calls from members of Congress to prohibit its use.

Critics such as politicians, interest groups, and competitors like Meta launched a coordinated effort against TikTok, amplifying false, non-existent challenges that alarmed parents. They accused the app of indoctrinating young people to oppose the United States and its foreign policies. However, it’s important to note that shifts in young people’s attitudes towards foreign policy and domestic issues had been occurring long before TikTok was even introduced. Despite a lack of substantial evidence, lawmakers focused on fears about China possibly accessing U.S. user data, yet they failed to enact any meaningful data privacy regulations.

In April 2024, President Joe Biden signed a law that required Bytedance to either dispose of their platform or risk being banned, effective from January 19, 2025. This decision was seen by many Americans as potentially limiting access to a genuinely open and worldwide internet.

Initially, numerous content creators and users had high expectations that the ban would not be sustained by the Supreme Court. They initiated movements and staged demonstrations on the court’s steps, appealing to the justices to reverse the legislation. Nevertheless, the verdict announced on Friday was a resounding 9-0 vote in favor of upholding the ban. The Supreme Court justified their decision by stating that despite TikTok providing “a unique and vast platform for expression, interaction, and community,” Congress had the authority to pass the law.

The CEO of TikTok, Shou Chew, reacted to the decision by stating that they have been diligently working to safeguard the constitutional freedom of speech for the over 170 million Americans who utilize their platform daily for connecting, creating, discovering, and realizing their aspirations. He also expressed gratitude towards President Trump for his pledge to collaborate with them in finding a resolution that ensures TikTok remains accessible within the United States.

The effects of the ban will likely extend widely and reshape the digital terrain for years, as rivals strive to capture its user base – a feat that some of these very users have ridiculed and harassed those enforcing the ban, by migrating to Chinese social media platforms like RedNote. In contrast to TikTok, which is headquartered in the U.S. and Singapore and does not serve China, RedNote originates from China and accommodates American users within its Chinese borders (TikTok’s user data is kept outside of China).

The lack of TikTok in the U.S. is expected to create a gap in the digital world that no other platform appears ready or capable of bridging. This could potentially leave a whole generation of content creators without an income, as many small businesses fear they’ll have to close down. TikTok’s user base may fragment and migrate to various smaller platforms, with some communities vanishing entirely.

In essence, TikTok significantly empowered countless individuals by providing them with a platform to express their views, even those who felt unheard before. Whether you appreciate it or not, it fundamentally transformed the nature of online communities. After its departure, it will become more challenging for newcomers without an established presence to connect and be heard on the internet.

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2025-01-18 22:25