On January 19th, 2025, the Skyline populace woke to find a very different world. The popular social media app, TikTok – owned by Chinese company ByteDance Ltd. – was temporarily banned in the United States. Countless Skyline students reacted with frustration and complaints, but shockingly, the app came back online in America just 14 hours later. But although President Donald Trump’s return to office brought TikTok with it, students shouldn’t feel relieved yet.
The temporary ban of TikTok was the result of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, which was signed into law by then US President Joe Biden. The administration and congress cited concerns that TikTok poses a national security threat because ByteDance Ltd. could allow the Chinese government to access American’s private data.
In an executive order on January 20th, President Donald Trump temporarily reopened the use of the app in America for the next 75 days to “permit [the] Administration an opportunity to determine the appropriate course of action with respect to TikTok.”
According to the executive order, the 47th president intends to “pursue a resolution that protects national security while saving a platform used by 170 million Americans.” This means that the Trump Administration could potentially reinstate the ban by April 5th, 2025 if they don’t find another solution. The statement was unclear about what that solution might be.
Many Skyline students feel unimpressed with the Biden administration’s reasons for the ban and the Trump administration’s temporary pause. Students still protest the idea of a permanent TikTok ban. “There’s so many other things that the government could be focusing on,” says Amy Zheng (‘28). “They’re taking away something that could be very important to creators and how people make money. It’s also a large way we connect with other people.”
Some students have also questioned the legality of the ban. “I don’t think it’s constitutional,” says Josh Hetrick (‘25). “I was a little upset and also surprised. I didn’t think it would actually happen.”
If Trump decides to reinstate the ban, Hetrick thinks he’ll “probably be a little annoyed, but it’ll be interesting to see what life is like without it.”
