In March, U.S. representatives voted to remove TikTok from app stores if TikTok’s CEO, Shou Zi Chew, does not split from their parent corporation in China. On April 22, the bill passed in the senate and got signed by President Joe Biden. Fears spread through the courtroom involving security leaks and the already rising tension between the U.S. and China. With Michigan’s new legislation against TikTok in government facilities in most forms, it didn’t surprise many that it moved forward. President Joe Biden has followed through with his word that if it did pass, he would sign it without reluctance. This long ranging court case has allowed for people to speak on this before and after the bill passed creating a timeline.

“I do think it will be passed in the senate because currently it has bipartisan support,” teacher Collin Syler said. “In this day in age, it is so rare for anything to be supported by both parties that I think they will take advantage of that.”

The House of Representatives voted yes to this bill with a ratio of 352-65 based on the fear for national security concerns. Not a single Michigan representative said no, with the exception of one that wasn’t there and was exempt from the vote. Quite a few people are frustrated since the app allows them to connect with people that they never could before, while some are happy to finally be able to touch some grass.

“I am very sad about TikTok getting deleted because I definitely am pretty addicted to it,” sophomore Amaya Kinsman said. “I spend a lot of time on it so it being gone will be weird.”

Some even think the whole issue seems off, due to the fact that the government isn’t paying attention to how it is affecting the kids and is just sticking to foreign issues, many questioning how much this truly is about TikTok and not something deeper.

“I love car and Don Toliver edits,” senior Neno Pelione said. “It’ll be weird not watching my friend’s videos anymore.”

“I agree and disagree since there is so much genuinely going on in the world right now,” sophomore Sofia Crook said. “There is a lot of other political turmoil going on right now so this shouldn’t be the biggest issue. I understand the safety concerns and that, too, though.”

Many students saw the issue on a less personal level, mentioning that this will send many organizations into bankruptcy or worse. Almost five-million businesses will fall apart if Tik-Tok is dropped even with alternative social media outlets like Instagram and X.

“I’m going to miss brainrot,” senior Ben Pittman said. “I love skibidi toilet.”

“TikTok is kind of helpful for other people and their businesses,” junior Nayeem Salam said. “They can promote their businesses and work with others, some time TikTok itself. If TikTok is gone then that will be a loss of income for many.”

There are other very good things that TikTok is also known for like activism. Sounds may get popular raising money for people with cancer, without food, and so many other things so if it is deleted many people will have to find new resources. Hopefully activism will spread to other apps so this may not be an issue. Good news is that there are still always petitions to sign
on change.org or places to send money to those who need it like GoFundMe.

“I think that it’s very unfair because there is a lot of misinformation on the topic involving China,” sophomore Jayden Burroughs said. “It’s frustrating because Facebook does the exact same thing but is in America.”

“A lot of bigger corporations like Meta are trying to make their own version of TikTok and the transfer from one channel to another,” Junior Remy Barents said. “There are going to be a lot of fake accounts and people trying to build their following back. It’s going to be a mess but I’m excited to see how it goes.”

It should be brought up that it is proven that pro-Chinese videos like tourism guides will go more viral than anti-Chinese videos speaking up for things like the Uyghur Muslim Genocide. These slight changes in how news is presented can create a stark difference in the over-
all opinion of citizens in the United States. People all over this country use the app instead of unbiased and truthful new sites so the app being so open to so many false claims is extremely harmful.

“Sometimes TikTok helps single fathers and single mothers to reach out where they otherwise wouldn’t be able to get help,” senior Stephanie Bartlett said. “It can save lives.”

“I do not have TikTok myself, but it can be a very addictive app for students,” principal Tim Youngblood said. “Socially, it can be good for them, but the privacy concerns and espionage can be concerning.”

TikTok has been fighting this legislation with plenty of success specifically with the general public. The release of Pro-TikTok ads, celebrity statements, and public announcements from Shou Zi Chew himself. Even more support has spread after a congress-
man asked Chew, who is a proud Singaporean, if he was a communist Chinese spy. This question alone flooded many users’ for you pages making them question if these legislators know what they are talking about.

“I think this is a good thing because a lot of kids are always on their phones and it’s been proven to slow attention spans,” junior Dawson Page said. “In the end, another app will take its place and involve their algorithm.”

“Watching trendy videos and finding new music will feel so much different if TikTok disappears,” junior Caitlyn Seal said.

Who knows how this may change society as a whole or even to what extent his may change life? Nobody can truly say until it actually takes effect and it will be a slow grueling glitchy process. All there is to do now is to sit and wait.