U.S. Appeals Court upholds law that could ban TikTok

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld a law that could result in TikTok’s ban in the United States. On Friday, the decision was delivered unanimously by a three-judge panel from the Court of Appeals. 

Judges cite national security over free speech

The judges dismissed TikTok’s argument that the law violates the First Amendment, describing the legislation as “carefully crafted” to address foreign influence concerns.

The court ruled that national security concerns outweigh the First Amendment claims raised by TikTok and its users. “The government acted solely to protect freedom from a foreign adversary nation and to limit that adversary’s ability to gather data on people in the United States,” the judges stated. They argued that the law was carefully tailored to address risks tied to foreign ownership.

A potential ban could force millions of users to turn to other platforms. “We recognize that this decision has significant implications for TikTok and its users,” the court noted.

ByteDance faces January deadline or ban

TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, must sell its U.S. operations by January 19, 2025, or face a ban. This follows a law signed by President Joe Biden in April. The law also allows the President to grant a one-time extension of up to 90 days if a sale negotiation is underway.

American lawmakers and intelligence officials have long expressed concerns about TikTok’s potential misuse of U.S. user data by the Chinese government. They explained that ByteDance’s ownership allows the Chinese government to access sensitive information or spread propaganda. 

During his first term as president, Donald Trump tried to force the sale of TikTok to U.S. owners but was unsuccessful. However, earlier this year, Trump said that banning TikTok would monopolize social media apps, especially Facebook and Instagram.  

TikTok calls the ban “censorship” and plans a Supreme Court appeal

TikTok’s spokesperson Michael Hughes criticized the ruling, calling it “outright censorship of the American people.” The company plans to appeal to the Supreme Court. TikTok said it is confident that the nation’s highest court will protect free speech.

“The Supreme Court has an established historical record of protecting Americans’ right to free speech, and we expect they will do just that on this important constitutional issue,” Hughes said.

TikTok which was introduced in the U.S. in 2018 now has more than 170 million U.S. users. The company said its e-commerce feature, TikTok Shop, drove more than $100 million in the U.S. Black Friday sales. 

The platform’s future in the U.S. rests on the upcoming Supreme Court appeal and ByteDance’s ability to secure a sale within the January deadline.

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