Opinion | To Tik or not to Tok

With about 100 million users in the country, TikTok is facing a potential ban on all devices in the U.S. due to concerns that the Chinese government is gaining access to sensitive information. Unsplash

People seem to have a love-hate relationship with the TikTok app.

If you ask someone from Gen Z what they think about TikTok, you will probably get a favorable answer. With 60% of its user base, TikTok is the third most-used social platform from Gen Z, behind only YouTube and Instagram. 

That is not to say that there aren’t those within Gen Z who hate the platform. I’ve definitely had conversations with people who look down on the platform and the content that exists in it. I have to admit I was originally one of them too. 

But then I gave TikTok a fair shot. Once I got past the dances and thirst traps that I had heard so much about, I discovered a whole other world within the app. 

Emilia Cuevas Diaz, opinions editor 

There are so many communities that found a place on TikTok to come together and share their experiences and find support. From marginalized communities, to aspiring stand-up comedians, to women in STEM — TikTok has a tiny little place within it for everyone.

There’s places where communities share their hobbies, like BookTok for book lovers who want to share their opinions on the last book they read, or the Dungeons & Dragons corner where players share anecdotes from their campaigns.

TikTok has also provided a place for people to share their experiences and find other people who have faced similar things in their lives. For example, there are women who share self-defense tips or people with ADHD sharing tips on how to make life more manageable.

There’s also a business side of TikTok that has provided multiple artists the opportunity to grow and do what they love full time. There are multiple small business owners whose main consumer base are their TikTok followers. There are also artists who promote the art they make through TikTok and make a living by selling it. 

And who could forget about the self-published authors whopromote their own books while also giving other authors tips on how to get their own works published? Not only are these authors sharing their insight into the publishing industry, but they are also providing alternatives for smaller authors who might have a harder time getting published through traditional publishing.

Now, I'm not denying that there are bad sides to TikTok, like any social media platform, TikTok has a lot of downsides and ugly aspects. But what I do believe is that TikTok has provided around 100 million Americans the ability to connect with a community that they might not have been able to find otherwise.

So why does the U.S. government seem so set on banning the app despite its popularity?

The main concerns that are being raised are that the Chinese government could gain a lot of sensitive data from its users as well as sue the app to spread misinformation. 

Sound familiar? Because it personally reminds me of a lot of apps like Facebook.

I mean, who could forget about the Cambridge Analytica scandal and how an election was influenced with information from Facebook users?

But if that came to light back in 2018 and politicians are so concerned about how user data on social media platforms can be used to manipulate the country and spread misinformation, why was Facebook never banned the way they are now trying to get TikTok banned?

I think the better question is:why is the focus on banning TikTok instead of protecting American citizens’ privacy?

Let’s be real here. Imposing a ban on TikTok would not only hurt a big chunk of the users who rely on the app for their income, but it also doesn’t actually address the issue of social media companies harvesting user data and using it to manipulate them.

If the lawmakers are really so concerned about making sure the private information of citizens remains private, then maybe they should come up with legislation that stops all social media companies from harvesting user data. 

Yes, the concerns that are being raised over TikTok are valid, but banning the app doesn’t fix the problem. It just dictates which companies get to play with your personal information.