Mar 23, 2024; Portland, Oregon, USA; TikTok LCD ads before the match between Portland Timbers and Philadelphia Union at Providence Park. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
MLS: Philadelphia Union at Portland Timbers
(Washington, D.C.) — TikTok and parent company ByteDance are set for a key court hearing. A law passed earlier this year calls for the China-based ByteDance to sell the social media app by January 19th or have it banned in the U.S. Oral arguments on legal challenges to the law will be heard today. TikTok and ByteDance claim the law is unconstitutional and violates free speech rights. The White House and other supporters of the law have said the measure isn’t a move to eliminate the app, but is rather a challenge to Chinese-based ownership of TikTok.
Both the Trump and Harris campaigns have been effectively using the Chinese platform to reach voters.
Over 20 state attorneys general are calling for a national TikTok ban. The coalition says the China-based social media app poses a threat to national security. They filed a request with the U.S. Court of Appeals to uphold a law that would force the parent company of TikTok to sell the app if it cannot find an American buyer within a year.
