Washington:

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that his 75-day delay in enforcing a ban on the popular short-video app TikTok could be extended, but said he doesn’t think that will be necessary.

In remarks to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he still hopes to make a deal on TikTok to keep the app alive in the U.S., crediting it with helping him win the 2024 presidential election.

The app’s fate has been up in the air since a law requiring its Chinese owner ByteDance to either sell it on national security grounds or face a ban took effect on January 19.

Trump, after taking office on January 20, signed an executive order seeking to delay by 75 days enforcement of the law.

Asked if the deadline was running out, Trump said, “Well, I have 90 days from about two weeks ago, and I’m sure it can be extended. But let’s see. I don’t think you’ll need to.”

It wasn’t immediately clear what the 90-day reference meant.

Trump said there were a lot of people interested in acquiring the social media company, and said its image had changed since the 2024 election. He said he found the app to be fair and useful in appealing to young voters.

Trump said he believed Chinese President Xi Jinping would agree to approve the sale of TikTok to a U.S. buyer as it would also be in China’s interest.

“I’m going to make it worthwhile for China to do,” he said, without giving any details. “I think it would be to China’s advantage to have the deal be made.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

TikTok has become a vital tool for people in the US to share information about ICE agent sightings, with the goal of undermining the aggressive crackdown on undocumented immigrants. This movement, which gained momentum after the Trump administration announced mass deportations, has spread across the country, with users in states like Virginia, Maryland, California, North Carolina, and Michigan posting videos and using coded language to evade censorship.

Users are employing creative tactics to disseminate information, such as using phrases like “cute winter boots” or “ICE cream trucks” to signal ICE sightings. Others are sharing links to resources like “People Over Papers,” a map of unconfirmed immigration agent sightings, and providing information on individuals’ rights when encountering ICE agents.

According to Daniel Morales, a history professor specialising in immigration, this phenomenon represents the latest evolution of decades-worth of community warnings regarding immigration raids, per Axios. Morales notes that, throughout history, communities have adapted to new technologies to share information and protect themselves, from using newspapers in the 1930s-1950s to phones and TV news stations in the 1990s. The trend has now shifted to MySpace, emails, Facebook groups and Whatsapp.

However, Morales also acknowledges the delicate balance between sharing vital information and perpetuating fear-mongering. To mitigate this risk, he recommends that users share personal, location-specific information, verify the accuracy of reports, and follow local immigrant rights groups to access reliable resources.

As the US grapples with the reality of mass deportations, Ipsos pollster Chris Jackson suggests that public support for such measures may wane as the consequences become more apparent, “The real question is going to be … does that level of support maintain or fragment as they confront the reality of what it means.”

Meanwhile, TikTok continues to play a crucial role in shedding light on the complexities of immigration enforcement.
 

Washington, United States:

Donald Trump’s new press secretary on Tuesday invited TikTokers and podcasters to apply for White House press passes, in an effort to reach beyond the mainstream media that the US president often slams. In her first time at the White House podium, Karoline Leavitt said an additional seat for “new media voices” had been reserved at the front of the cramped briefing room.

Trump has repeatedly criticized traditional media as the “enemy of the people,” and he credits a series of podcast appearances for aiding his return to the White House. 

“As the youngest press secretary in history, thanks to President Trump, I take great pride in opening up this room to new media voices,” the 27-year-old Leavitt told a packed briefing room.

“Whether you are a TikTok content creator, a blogger, a podcaster, if you are producing legitimate news content… you will be allowed to apply for press credentials to this White House,” she said.

The shake-up was more modest that some news organizations had feared, after the president’s son Donald Trump Jr. talked in November about “opening up” the press room.

The 49 seats in the room are allocated to a number of news organizations, including AFP, that are members of the White House Correspondents Association.

Reporters without seats are allowed to stand at the side if there is space — as they did for Leavitt’s packed-out debut on Tuesday.

The new press secretary also vowed to hold reporters accountable for what she said were “lies” about Trump.

“We know for a fact there have been lies that have been pushed by many legacy media outlets in this country about this president, about his family, and we will not accept that,” she said.

The briefing at the iconic White House podium was Leavitt’s first since Trump was inaugurated eight days ago. She has so far largely spoken to conservative television outlets including Fox News.

Trump sidestepped interviews with some major US TV networks during the election campaign, opting instead to speak to several largely right-wing podcasts including the hugely popular Joe Rogan Experience.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

A US man who allegedly said President Donald Trump “needs to be assassinated” and posed on TikTok holding a rifle has been arrested, authorities said.

Douglas Thrams, 23, posted multiple videos on Tiktok between Monday, when Trump was inaugurated, and Wednesday threatening anti-government violence, according to a criminal complaint Thursday.

“Every US government building needs be bombed immediately,” Thrams was quoted as saying in one of the videos.

Referring to Trump, Thrams went on to say, using an expletive, “He needs to be assassinated and this time, don’t… miss.”

Trump was the target of two assassination attempts last year including one at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where he was wounded in the ear.

In another video, Thrams held a rifle and tapped it, an FBI agent said in an affidavit.

Thrams, from the midwestern state of Indiana, was arrested on Thursday and charged with making “interstate communications with a threat to injure.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Beijing, China:

China on Monday urged the United States to listen to “rational voices” over the social media platform TikTok, as a law banning the wildly popular app on national security grounds came into effect.

“We hope that the US side will seriously listen to rational voices and provide an open, fair, just, and non-discriminatory business environment for market entities from all countries operating in the United States,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.

“TikTok has been operating in the United States for many years and is deeply loved by American users,” Mao said.

“It has played a positive role in promoting domestic employment and driving consumption in the US,” she added.

TikTok restored service in the United States Sunday after briefly going dark, crediting President-elect Donald Trump, who retakes power on Monday, for making the reversal possible.

The outgoing administration of President Joe Biden had earlier said that it would not enforce any ban.

TikTok had shut down in the United States late Saturday as a deadline loomed for its Chinese owners ByteDance to sell its US subsidiary to non-Chinese buyers.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Trump said he will take a decision on Monday.

Washington, United States:

TikTok says it will “go dark” in the United States on Sunday unless the government provides assurances a new law calling for its ban won’t be used to punish service providers.

“Unless the Biden Administration immediately provides a definitive statement to satisfy the most critical service providers assuring non-enforcement, unfortunately TikTok will be forced to go dark on January 19,” TikTok said in a statement.

The US Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law supported by President Joe Biden and Congress that requires the app’s owner ByteDance to either sell TikTok or cease US operations by January 19.

“The statements issued today by both the Biden White House and the Department of Justice have failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurance to the service providers that are integral to maintaining TikTok’s availability to over 170 million Americans,” TikTok said following the Supreme Court decision. 

The unanimous ruling, which found the law does not violate free speech rights, dealt a major blow to TikTok and created uncertainty about what will happen when the ban takes effect. The court agreed with the government’s national security concerns about Chinese company ByteDance’s ownership of the app.

ByteDance has firmly rejected selling its US operation, a stance also taken by Beijing, which has denounced the law as theft.

The justices acknowledged that, “for more than 170 million Americans,” the social media giant “offers a distinct and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community.”

But, the court concluded, “Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary.”

Even if the ban now stands, the Biden White House said it won’t enforce it, leaving the matter to incoming president Donald Trump.

Trump, who opposes the ban, discussed TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday.

“The Supreme Court decision was expected, and everyone must respect it,” Trump wrote on Truth Social as he said he would need time to find an alternative to the ban.

The Department of Justice noted that enforcing the law “will be a process that plays out over time,” in a potential sign that it does not intend to carry out the law for now. Despite the court defeat, TikTok chief executive Shou Chew thanked Trump for his “commitment to work with us to find a solution.”

Trump “truly understands our platform,” he added.

TikTok has been lobbying furiously to thwart the law’s implementation with Chew set to attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday.

The law requires Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, blocking new downloads. The companies could face penalties of up to $5,000 per user who can access the app.

Chew gave no indication on whether TikTok would unilaterally shut down its platform in the United States when the ban kicks in, as reported in US media.

TikTok’s lawyer Noel Francisco had warned it would shut down Sunday in case of a legal defeat.

‘Viable deal’

Trump’s incoming national security advisor Mike Waltz told Fox News the administration would work “to keep TikTok from going dark,” noting the law allows a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward “a viable deal.” 

Former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt has expressed interest in leading a purchase of TikTok’s US activity and said he’s “ready to work with the company and President Trump to complete a deal.”

The ban would hugely benefit US-owned rivals Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, but influencers said that TikTok’s unique abilities could not be matched.

“Making videos and reaching people on TikTok is so much easier than a lot of other platforms,” said Nathan Espinoza, who has more than 500,000 followers on TikTok.

Courtney Spritzer, head of digital marketing agency Socialfly, said TikTok creators were in “great uncertainty.” 

Among advertisers, “some are betting there will be a shutdown while others are more optimistic that it will continue to exist after Sunday.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

“I almost, like, don’t know how to define myself without TikTok,” content creator Ayman Chaudhary sighed, reflecting the consternation of millions over US authorities’ scheduled banning Sunday of the hugely popular app.

After months of legal tussles, the US Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law that would ban the video-sharing platform — used by 170 million Americans — in the name of national security, unless its Chinese owners reach an 11th-hour deal to sell it to American buyers.

“I’m more sad than shocked,” the 24-year-old Chaudhary told AFP. “But still, it’s sad and disappointing that the US government has come together to ban an app instead of banding together to adopt a law that matters about health or education.”

It remains uncertain whether TikTok will turn out the lights Sunday — for a single day or forever. Potential buyers exist, though TikTok’s owner, Chinese tech company ByteDance, has systematically refused to part with its crown jewel.

President-elect Donald Trump, just days from his second inauguration, said Friday that he “must have time” to decide whether to enforce the high court’s ruling. He promised a decision “in the not too distant future.”

Until then, Ayman and countless other content creators have been left gloomily contemplating a future without TikTok.

– Mandarin ‘out of spite’? –

“I started five years ago in 2020 during (the Covid-19) quarantine, and I’ve been employed, like, through TikTok, and now it just feels like suddenly I’m unemployed,” said Ayman, an avid reader who offers book recommendations on the platform, earning enough from ads and sponsors to pay her bills.

Like thousands of other worried TikTok users, she has protectively created a profile on Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram.

Nicknamed “Red Note” by its American users, it was the most-downloaded app on the American Apple Store this week.

People are turning to Red Note, Ayman said, as “kind of a protest, because it is a Chinese-owned app, and TikTok is being banned because it’s, like, Chinese-owned.”

The language-teaching app Duolingo made a clear pitch to people looking for life after TikTok.

“Learning Mandarin out of spite? You’re not alone,” Duolingo posted on X. “We’ve seen a 216% growth in new Chinese (Mandarin) learners in the US compared to this time last year.”

On TikTok, many American creators have published videos combining their favorite moments on the app with farewell messages urging fans to follow them to other platforms, including Xiaohongshu — while openly mocking the concerns of American lawmakers.

– ‘Micro-influencers’ –

“Most students don’t buy the narrative that there’s Chinese spies that are controlling the algorithm” on TikTok, said Chris Dier, a history teacher who shares educational videos on TikTok and uses them as well in his classes.

He said students “think that the United States government is not a fan of TikTok because… the government can’t easily control it.”

Xiaohongshu, which is entirely in Mandarin, would not appear to provide a realistic long-term alternative for frustrated American users.

Popular even before the pandemic, TikTok exploded among young people living in quarantine, and became a must-have resource for many small companies and start-ups.

“It’s a scary time for a lot of smaller creators, because I think TikTok is one of the very few platforms on the internet where micro-influencers can really thrive,” said Nathan Espinoza, who has more than 550,000 subscribers on the app.

Indeed, the social network has built its success not so much via personal recommendations as through its ultra-powerful algorithm, which lets it rapidly identify users’ interests and funnel content of particular interest to them.

“I’m a more YouTube-centric creator now,” Espinoza said.

“But I wouldn’t be where I am today without TikTok, because that first viral video showed me that it’s possible, and there’s an audience for the type of videos that I make.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

TikTok plans to shut U.S. operations of its social media app used by 170 million Americans on Sunday, when a federal ban is set to take effect, barring a last-minute reprieve, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

The Washington Post reported President-elect Donald Trump, whose term begins a day after a ban would start, is considering issuing an executive order to suspend enforcement of a shutdown for 60 to 90 days. The newspaper did not say how Trump could legally do so.

The law signed in April mandates a ban on new TikTok downloads on Apple or Google app stores if Chinese parent ByteDance fails to divest the site.

Users who have downloaded TikTok would theoretically still be able to use the app, except that the law also bars U.S. companies starting Sunday from providing services to enable the distribution, maintenance, or updating of it.

The Trump transition team did not have an immediate comment. Trump has said he should have time after taking office to pursue a “political resolution” of the issue.

“TikTok itself is a fantastic platform,” Trump’s incoming national security adviser Mike Waltz told Fox News on Wednesday. “We’re going to find a way to preserve it but protect people’s data.”

A White House official told Reuters Wednesday President Joe Biden has no plans to intervene to block a ban in his final days in office if the Supreme Court fails to act and added Biden is legally unable to intervene absent a credible plan from ByteDance to divest TikTok.

U.S. Senator Ed Markey on Wednesday sought unanimous consent to extend the deadline for ByteDance to divest TikTok by 270 days but Republican Senator Tom Cotton blocked the proposal.

If it is banned, TikTok plans that users attempting to open the app will see a pop-up message directing them to a website with information about the ban, the people said, requesting anonymity as the matter is not public.

“We go dark. Essentially, the platform shuts down,” TikTok lawyer Noel Francisco told the Supreme Court last week.

The company also plans to give users an option to download all their data so that they can take a record of their personal information, the sources said.

The U.S. Supreme Court is currently deciding whether to uphold the law and allow TikTok to be banned on Sunday, overturn the law, or pause the law to give the court more time to make a decision.

Shutting down TikTok in the U.S. could make it unavailable for users in many other countries, the company said in a court filing last month, because hundreds of service providers in the U.S. help make the platform available to TikTok users around the world – and could no longer do so starting Sunday.

TikTok said in the court filing an order was needed to “avoid interruption of services for tens of millions of TikTok users outside the United States.”

TikTok had said that the prohibitions would eventually make the app unusable, noting in the filing that “data centers would almost certainly conclude that they can no longer store” TikTok code, content, or data.

The sources said the shutdown aims to protect TikTok service providers from legal liability and make it easier to resume operations if President-elect Donald Trump opted to roll back any ban.

Shutting down such services does not require longer planning, one of the sources said, noting that most operations have been continuing as usual as of this week. If the ban gets reversed later, TikTok would be able to restore service for U.S. users in a relatively short time, sources said.

TikTok and its Chinese parent, ByteDance, did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.

U.S. tech publication The Information first reported the news late on Tuesday.

Privately held ByteDance is about 60% owned by institutional investors such as BlackRock and General Atlantic, while its founders and employees own 20% each. It has more than 7,000 employees in the United States.

President Joe Biden last April signed a law requiring ByteDance to sell its U.S. assets by Jan. 19, or face a nationwide ban. Last week, the Supreme Court seemed inclined to uphold the law, despite calls from Trump and lawmakers to extend the deadline.

TikTok and ByteDance have sought, at the very least, a delay in the implementation of the law, which they say violates the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protection against government abridgment of free speech.

TikTok said in the court filing last month it estimated one-third of its 170 million American users would stop accessing the platform if the ban lasted a month.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

TikTok faces an imminent shutdown in the United States after Congress passed a law last year forcing its Chinese owner ByteDance to either sell the platform or close it by Sunday.

The US Supreme Court is expected to rule this week on TikTok’s challenge to the law.

Following a hearing last Friday, expectations are high that the law will stand. 

Here is a review of what could happen next for TikTok in the United States.

App Store Ban

Under a ban, the US government would first direct Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, preventing new downloads as early as Sunday, a day before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.

However, the app would remain on the phones of the existing 170 million US users unless TikTok directly blocks their access. 

Although TikTok lawyer Noel Francisco stated the site would “go dark” on Sunday if the justices fail to block the ban, many observers doubt ByteDance would unilaterally hit the off switch for American users.

TikTok indicated as much in a memo to staff, cited in the Verge on Tuesday.

“Our offices will remain open” regardless of what happens on January 19th and employees will keep their jobs.

“The bill is not written in a way that impacts the entities through which you are employed, only the US user experience,” the memo said.

Workarounds

But even if TikTok keeps its app accessible, US users would stop receiving security and software updates, leading to gradual deterioration in quality and increased vulnerabilities.

As a workaround, users might turn to VPNs (virtual private networks) to mask their location by routing through countries where TikTok remains available.

Another possibility is that TikTok could update from non-US servers through partnerships with foreign, non-Chinese companies — though this would constitute direct defiance of US authorities and likely intensify scrutiny of ByteDance’s US operations.

Defiance?

Once Trump takes office, the law’s implementation will fall to his attorney general, who could choose not to enforce it, or stall, defying Congress’s overwhelming support for the legislation.

The Trump administration might also approach the Republican majority in Congress to modify the law, potentially giving ByteDance more time to find a buyer or devise alternative solutions.

Alternatives

Once banned, the assumption is that TikTok users will move to other apps, like Instagram Reels and YouTube shorts, TikTok copycats that have grown and will directly benefit from their rival’s demise. 

Elon Musk’s X could also benefit and the tycoon has made it known that he wants his platform, formerly Twitter, to more closely resemble TikTok, with video content and shopping features.

Trump has expressed concern that a ban would primarily advantage Meta-owned Instagram, which may explain Mark Zuckerberg’s recent public support for Trump.

Some American content creators have already migrated to Xiaohongshu (Red Note), another Chinese social media app that recently topped the Apple App Store downloads.

Investor Rescue?

Several potential buyers have emerged, including a group led by Frank McCourt, former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, even if ByteDance has ruled out a sale for now.

His partner in the bid, Canadian businessman Kevin O’Leary, recently golfed with Trump and reported the president-elect’s desire to use the TikTok saga as leverage in US-China relations.

A report that the Chinese authorities would be open to a buyout by Musk was denied by TikTok.

Former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick also remains interested in buying TikTok, according to the Information.

For now, TikTok’s fate rests with the Supreme Court, with the company lawyers asking the nine justices for a delay to any ban to provide “breathing space” for a solution.

“Nobody knows what they can do and who’s going to do it until they hear from the Supreme Court,” Trump told Newsmax on Monday.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)