After listening to of Biden’s potential TikTok ban, some customers say they’re not anxious (but)

Their favourite app would possibly get banned — however as a substitute of panicking, some TikTok customers mentioned they continue to be unfazed.

NBC Information reported this week, citing a supply near the corporate, that the Biden administration is threatening to doubtlessly ban TikTok within the U.S. if the app’s Chinese language homeowners refuse to promote their stakes. When requested by NBC Information in regards to the menace, a handful of younger customers shared the same sentiment: They’re not taking it significantly. 

The web response seems to be much less extreme than when then-President Donald Trump and his administration floated a ban. 

“This similar factor occurred some time again,” Haley Kowtko, 19, of California, mentioned by way of textual content message. “Not many individuals are speaking about it, particularly on the app. I haven’t seen something in regards to the app being doubtlessly banned.”  

That’s to not say that some folks aren’t reacting on the app. The hashtag #DontBanTikTok had greater than 93.2 million views, with some movies relationship again to 2020 and others uploaded this week following reports of the Biden administration’s move. A TikTok spokesperson confirmed Friday {that a} handful of creators are planning an off-app protest in Washington, D.C., for Wednesday, hoping to convey their considerations to the Biden administration’s doorstep.

However the present sentiment amongst customers serves as a stark distinction to the earlier proposed ban by the Trump administration. At the moment, one creator mentioned they’d “by no means seen that many individuals speaking about one factor on the app for thus lengthy.”

“I feel as a result of all of us freaked out earlier than and nothing occurred, nobody is taking it significantly,” Kowtko mentioned. 

Jacqueline Metzger, 17, mentioned she was “a bit of shocked” when she heard of the potential ban. However she mentioned dropping TikTok would probably give approach to one other new platform or would make an present platform extra well-liked, identical to TikTok stuffed the void left behind by the previous short-form video app Vine.

“If TikTok is banned, somebody goes to give you an alternate. There are such a lot of TikTok alternate options already, like YouTube shorts and Instagram reels,” Metzger mentioned. “It’s in every single place, so I’m not too anxious about that.” 

This time round, there’s additionally much less of a concern amongst creators: Some have already been branching out past TikTok to broaden their following.

“I don’t see this taking place quickly or the near-term horizon, and creators since 2020 have been actually savvy about being on a number of platforms and doing short-form video on a number of totally different locations,” mentioned Mae Karwowski, founder and CEO of the influencer advertising and marketing company Clearly. “It’s much less damaging than the preliminary story of 2020.”

She mentioned the vibe amongst customers and content material creators on TikTok is at the moment “cautiously optimistic.”

TikTok creator Marcus DiPaola, who has amassed 3.8 million followers, mentioned he seen waves of panic pricking up amongst creators who feared dropping their platform. 

DiPaola, who is understood for posting movies about present occasions, mentioned he had seen “numerous TikToks” of creators urging followers to subscribe to their different platforms, simply in case the platform vanished. Nonetheless, DiPaola mentioned he’s among the many much less anxious crowd of customers. 

“I’m on a bunch of platforms,” he mentioned. “If TikTok is banned, it might suck, however I’m not screwed.”

Others on the app mentioned they aren’t involved as a result of they suppose TikTok may get bought to a U.S.-based firm, which means it wouldn’t disappear fully.

“I’m not genuinely anxious in any respect,” mentioned Gigi Robinson, 24, a content material creator and Gen Z motivational public speaker. 

She referenced when Microsoft was in the running to amass TikTok when Trump tried to ban the app. 

“I feel the app will probably be round a method or one other,” she mentioned. “I simply don’t suppose will probably be owned by ByteDance.”