Now that former President Donald Trump has become a TikTok star mere weeks after joining the controversial social media app, opposition to the platform seems to have diminished. Loud China hawks have tempered their arguments that the app poses a national security risk, perhaps because they recognize that the leaders of both parties have embraced the app as a way of expressing protected speech — and maybe reach new voters along the way. Fear mongering from some of these politicians, who never demonstrated there was a credible national security threat, was based on political expediency, not fact.
TikTok, with about 150 million American monthly active users, has become a vital tool for leaders like Trump and Joe Biden to convey their messages. Young people dominate the app, with much of the content featuring singing and dancing as a form of self-expression. However, the app is also emerging as a platform for sharing political and policy messages with the American public. This type of content aligns with the free speech protected by the Bill of Rights.
