TikTok Tries to Avoid Ban by Citing its Benefit to U.S. Economy
By Movieguide® Contributor
TikTok is on the verge of being banned in the United States, but the platform claims its economic impact makes it invaluable to the country.
“TikTok drove $14.7 billion in revenue in a dozen key sectors in the US economy and contributed $24.2 billion to overall GDP in 2023,” Yahoo! Finance reported.
In a report released by TikTok, the company claimed that the app is more than “just entertainment.”
“It fuels significant economic growth for US businesses and the US economy as a whole,” the platform wrote. “The platform’s economic impact cannot be understated or ignored. Data shows it’s a major contributor to the US economy, driving billions of dollars in growth, supporting hundreds of thousands of US jobs, and delivering a competitive edge to small businesses across the nation.”
TikTok’s concern comes after the House passed a bill last month that would effectively ban the platform in the U.S. Movieguide® reported:
The legislation, called the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, demands that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, divest the platform. If it doesn’t within 180 days, the app would be banned in American app stores.
CNBC reports that it received bipartisan support, passing with a 352-65 vote…
It will now go to the Senate, where its future is unclear.
“The bill now heads to the Senate where it faces an uncertain future as senators appear divided about the legislation, and other federal and state-led efforts to ban TikTok have stalled,” CNBC reported.
If the legislation passes the Senate, President Joe Biden said he would sign the bill.
While legislators cite national security as their reasoning behind the bill, influencers and creators are worried a ban would harm their livelihoods.
Oxford Economics conducted a study that showed “TikTok is more than just another app in the online marketing toolkit. It has become a game-changer for millions of businesses. More than ever, US business owners say their livelihood depends on TikTok’s unique ability to help them reach otherwise unreachable customers and generate new revenue streams.”
“The study included a comprehensive survey of 1,050 SMBs and 7,500 consumers from all 50 US states and Washington D.C. To participate, SMBs needed a TikTok account for business use and consumers needed one for personal use. The participants included SMBs from a diverse range of industries and consumers from Gen Z to Baby Boomers to gain a more holistic view of TikTok’s impact,” the report stated.
Although TikTok may be a way for small businesses to reach a broader audience, the app can seriously harm children and teens.
Movieguide® reported:
The report, titled “How TikTok Serves Up Sex and Drug Videos to Minors,” conducted its experiment by creating fake accounts that represented users between 13 and 15 to observe what content the app emphasized.
“TikTok served one account registered as a 13-year-old at least 569 videos about drug use, references to cocaine and meth addiction, and promotional videos for online sales of drug products and paraphernalia. Hundreds of similar videos appeared in the feeds of the Journal’s other minor accounts,” the report found. “TikTok also showed the Journal’s teenage users more than 100 videos from accounts recommending paid pornography sites and sex shops. Thousands of others were from creators who labeled their content as for adults only.”
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