The Social Media Shut-Down Hall of Fame will be welcoming its newest member, TikTok, on January 19, 2025. Alongside the abandoned digital platform, Vine, American teenagers, as well as adults everywhere mourn the loss of yet another social media app they grew up on.
“My initial thoughts were that the ban was pointless. After all, Facebook already got exposed for stealing data and nothing was done there,” junior Boom Wilson shared.
“I personally am rather saddened by the ban. I loved being able to send videos to my friends and repost videos that let me show my true colors,” junior Morgan Parsons shared.
Though many teenagers are saddened to see the app go, others are indifferent, as senior Jailyn Rivera Ramos says that the ban will affect bored teenagers and adults.
“There’s always going to be a new trending app, so the ban will most likely be forgotten as everyone moves onto another app,” she claims.
“There are valid concerns about national security and data privacy due to the app’s foreign ownership and handling practices,” Stafford English Teacher, Taylor Butler, shared.
Americans everywhere on TikTok have been rapidly discussing which platform they should move on after TikTok’s ban. Some suggest the Chinese app Rednote, while others offer Neptune as an alternative. You could even stick to the basics and watch Instagram Reels.
Not only are Americans upset about the ban as they lose one of their main forms of entertainment, but it is also extremely effective on people who earn money from the app and use it as one of their main sources of income.
“Some small companies blew up on TikTok and that allowed them to expand, inherently making more jobs,” Wilson added. “They aren’t gonna have their main marketing resource, so they’re gonna get less money, which will lead to less employees because they simply can’t afford it.”
Being a typical teenager, I am disappointed to see TikTok go as I have owned the app since fifth grade. It serves as a miniature time capsule on my phone, rewatching all my cringey lip-sync videos to the Descendants soundtrack, it is a good reminder of my childhood.
Even though there are many downsides to the app ban, Parsons keeps a positive attitude, saying “It could also have a positive effect. Most people are always on their phone watching TikToks while they’re out, or when people are talking to them. So this may help them to become more social and interactive with others.”
Because America is descending into an Orwellian dystopia with Big Brother controlling us like puppets, maybe this could be our opportunity to reconnect with society. Touch some grass, get some Vitamin D from the sun, and maybe, if we are feeling extra spontaneous, do a cartwheel or jumping jack every so often instead of being soulless robots magnetized to our phones.
