Almost everyone in Arcadia High School (AHS) knows about one of the most popular social media apps ever, TikTok. You can scroll through billions of videos, discover new people, and utilize its numerous pieces of advice or hacks. Unfortunately, with the recent news of TikTok’s likely but not assured ban on Jan. 15 of next year, students are concerned with what their lives will be like without this app.
Feelings erupted on social media immediately after receiving the news of the possible ban, fingers made their way to post thousands of videos on why it is completely ridiculous to ban the app. People on TikTok utilize the app in so many different ways, allowing millions of Americans’ voices to be heard. People who use TikTok, also known as “TikTokers,” post videos as a means to educate individuals on various topics, even though much of the content does purely revolve around entertainment for all ages, ranging from current worldwide events to simple cooking videos teenagers can make at home when they’re feeling hungry.
“I really do find it completely ridiculous that they’re banning TikTok. Personally, I use it everyday because I find it entertaining, useful for my own benefits, and quite frankly, educational,” said junior Lily Lindley.
She’s not alone in this conversation. If one simply searches on TikTok for people’s videos on the ban, hundreds of creators are sharing their opinions on why this ban should not happen. Many claim that the ban could also mean that people could lose their jobs. TikTok, on a surface level, is seen as an app for people to scroll through entertaining videos in their free time, but it is also a space for millions of creators who work their full time jobs on the app. Creators like Spencer Barbosa, an influencer whose job is creating TikTok videos, recently shared thoughts that she was quite saddened by the news. Many people similar to her have shown their concern and how frustrating it will be for them now that their jobs on TikTok are possibly at stake if the ban actually happens.
Yet, even with this global concern, many individuals do not feel the same sympathy for the ban as many others do. Simply scrolling through the comments under videos about the topic of the banning of TikTok, you can see that people aren’t really concerned about the potential future of TikTok because they believe it would be fresh air from another “toxic” social media platform. Students at AHS have also demonstrated their attitude towards the ban, which typically revolves around a carefree mood that ultimately displays it as something that won’t affect them in severe ways.
“Honestly, no matter the social media website, the addiction won’t change. Yes, there is TikTok right now, but if it gets banned, the world won’t end for people on social media. It’ll then be YouTube or Instagram that’ll be the next addiction spot, which really shows how much we made our lives revolve around these platforms,” said junior Sam Luan.
Many people agree with this topic as well. Social media has been such a damaging cause to our society as a whole with harm to our mental health such as anxiety, depression, and other health causes. Even with TikTok’s personal research, they said that “compulsive usage correlates with a slew of negative mental health effects like loss of analytical skills, memory formation, contextual thinking, conversational depth, empathy, and increased anxiety.”
Though we may see the videos as a fun way to escape reality, constantly utilizing the platform can essentially rot our human bodies which leaves long term effects.
“In the end though, I don’t think it’ll really get banned because there have been a lot of ban scares in the past that never happened,” said Luan.
TikTok’s possible future ban has really shaken up the discourse on platform. Thousands of people show their concern for it everyday and make sure it’s known. There has also been word of TikTok possibly getting a block on the ban; According to CNN, TikTok has requested a pause on the passing of the ban as a means to gaining more time to figure out how they want to move forward with the case.
Unfortunately for opponents of the ban, the US Appeals Court quickly denied any sort of stop to temporarily stop the process. So that ultimately could mean that TikTok has a ban coming its way and there are no extensions that could be given for a halt on a future ban. Even with the news of the denying an appeal on the ban, the idea of TikTok possibly selling itself to an American company. Essentially, the government believes that because TikTok is a Chinese company, it might be a place where users may sell US information to the Chinese government. This being the main reason there is a case in the first place on why the US court wants to ban the app.
Even with this news, students still demonstrate their concerns on the ban. Many say that TikTok is a spot for not only just a fun way as entertainment but also a space to learn. According to various people at AHS, it is still an app that our community is very used to and rely on on an everyday basis. But additionally, Gen Z has made it very common that people would much rather use TikTok as a search engine rather than Google or Safari. That essentially helps prove the fact that TikTok is necessary for the typical person from Gen Z as they show a strong reliance for the platform.
“Just like much of my generation, I am addicted to using TikTok and scrolling through videos for hours on end. But hearing the possibility of a ban actually took a positive turn on me. I think, for myself, a ban would do me good because I could focus better on my study habits. I also think that I would have just an overall better mental health change that would help my future,” said junior Penelope Crew.
“It still partly makes me feel upset about the whole ban though. Our whole generation is already very accustomed to TikTok and other social media, where they all have a big influence for entertainment but also information,” said Crew.
In the past, TikTok has faced various lawsuits and cases that ultimately led to Biden signing the bill requiring ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok, to sell the app to an American company. The US government specifically announced that they believe that “TikTok is a national security threat because China could use the app to access personal data from millions of Americans,” according to The Guardian. Even with the passing of the bill, many organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union, Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Center for Democracy and Technology have all declared their opposition to the ban and even wrote a letter saying the ban is basically censorship.
It is up to the future of our society to see how this ban can play out. But for now, one can only wonder if the possible ban will cause havoc on the internet, or will it allow different perspectives be given to people that they never saw through their screens?
Photo courtesy of FREEPIK.COM
