By Philip Yeung

TikTok refugees

Today is 19 January 2025, the day TikTok is to go dark. On its death bed, a new tribe is born: TikTok refugees. And what a huge tribe it is, all 170 million of them in the US alone. This is the first time so many Americans wear such a strange label and political identity. The irony is super bitter. America, the traditional haven of the persecuted, is now condemning people to seek refuge from an unjust law, setting a dangerous precedent for censorship in the process.

The US Supreme Court has decided to side with Congress on the TikTok ban. Despite fighting tooth and nail for its First Amendment rights, TikTok lawyers have failed to sway the justices. There is only an allegation, not a shred of evidence that TikTok is a threat to US national security.

TikTokers are upset. They are defying Congress and organizing a protest by flocking to RedNote, another platform 100% owned by China. More than 500,000 defected on day one. The looming ban is zigzagging US-China relations into a new direction. American users logging into RedNote do not see a monster, but discover Chinese decency and hospitality to foreigners. They suddenly wake up to the fact that they have been fed lies about China by their politicians with their own axe to grind. America has been living a lie. TikTok refugees are seeking asylum in China to escape US oppression. How sweet is this for China?

Why the ban on a platform so popular

TikTok did not cave in when confronted with the "ban or sale" order from Congress. Its CEO has stood firm that the app will go dark on 19 January, unless it gets a reprieve from the US president. Many of its users have built a comfortable livelihood as content creators. They see this ban as akin to a book ban, a naked censorship and brutal denial of their right to free speech. They suspect that fear of TikTok has been stoked by pro-Israeli lobbyists upset about the platform's pro-Gaza stance.

Highway robbery

Any way you slice it, this order smacks of high-way robbery in forcing its divestiture from the US and sale to a non-Chinese buyer. The land of the free has become the land of the oppressed. To them, TikTok is the only truly democratic platform as it does not cater to celebrities but to ordinary folks. Worldwide, it has become a hugely popular social platform, with 150 million users in Europe and another 23 million in the UK.

There is a tidal wave of backlash against the arbitrary censorship. Americans finally wake up to being gaslighted by their politicians on the bogus threat China poses to national security. This time, it is proving to be a double-edged sword, with sympathy swinging towards China. First, Huawei, and now TikTok. Anything created by China is automatically suspect and subject to removal.

Is Trump TikTok's knight in shining armor?

However, all is not lost. Biden has indicated that he is reluctant to enforce the law, preferring to leave it to his successor. Trump, for his part, has decided to befriend this hugely popular platform and its likeable CEO Shou Zi CHEW, who, ironically, is given the rare honor of being invited to attend Trump's inauguration on 20 January. The timing is exquisite. This event will be closely scrutinized by 170 million TikTok followers. They will either be glued to the TV or may flock to Pennsylvania Ave to witness the swearing-in ceremony, making it the most watched and attended presidential inauguration in history, unlike Trump's poorly attended first-term ceremony. Tens of thousands of TikTok content creators whose livelihoods are at stake will project a formidable presence.

Trump says that he needs time to work out an agreement between TikTok and Congress. He is U-turning on his previous hostility against the platform in his first term. This change of heart is no act of charity. It has come about because Trump has electorally benefited from TikTok's extra outreach. Plus, he is under pressure from American investors and users whose profits and livelihood have been disrupted by the ban. In politics, nothing is forever. Yesterday's enemy may become today's friend. Trump is nothing if not mercurial. He may slide into the accidental role as platform's godfather to 17% of America's adult population. Time will tell whether Trump lives up to his reputation as a legendary deal maker.

Will it be "Art of the Deal" or "Art of the Steal"?

TikTok's CEO should rush out to purchase a copy of Trump's ghostwritten bible, "The Art of the Deal," before the whole thing degenerates into an ugly "the Art of the Steal."

Trump's TikTok sympathies have already turned him into half a hero in China, as he casts himself as the platform's potential knight in shining armor. Domestically, he is wearing a halo too. So far, his lip service alone has won him legions of fans around the world. His legacy will write itself. The Year of the Snake may be the year that makes his otherwise disruptive presidency great. Will TikTok, like Trump, have nine lives? These are jittery but lucrative times to be odds-makers.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of DotDotNews.

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