It’s officially signed, TikTok on the path to being “Banned”

In an extremely rare showing of American bipartisanship, US President Joe Biden signed the foreign aid package pushed through Congress that includes a potential ban on the popular social media app, TikTok.

The bill puts pressure on the Chinese-based ByteDance company to sell off the app to an American company within 9 months time to avoid a forced shut down in the country.

If a deal is proposed but requires more time to finalize, Biden reserves the right to extend the deadline by an additional 3 months.

During a period of heightened political discourse among the two major parties in the United States, as well as growing hostilities between China and the USA, a unified stance against the social media site might be a telling sign of what lies ahead in the tech world.

China has actively banned USA-based apps for years now citing American propaganda as a major concern for national security.

Ironically, an infamous viral clip of TikTok CEO, Shou Zi Chew, testifying to Congress in January demonstrates the immense level of influence the company has with the public. By taking shorts clips out of context, many viewers and headlines made it seem as if Senator Tom Cotton couldn’t tell the difference between a Singaporean and Chinese person. The full questioning sequence (video below) illustrates a very different scene.

Social media in general can be an uplifting source of community that emits a sense of belonging. Sadly, it can also be an echo chamber of misinformation and mistrust. After nearly two decades of rather limited legislating from lawmakers, TikTok might be a turning point for how the future of applications will evolve going forward.