- TikTok came back on Sunday after briefly going dark. Users and the company commended President-elect Donald Trump across social media.
While TikTok closed its doors to US-based users last night, the platform was back up Sunday, prompting fans to rejoice.
“TIKTOK IS BACK HELL YEAH,” said @auguststurniolo on X.
And with Donald Trump’s inauguration tomorrow, others across the app are giving credit to the president-elect.
“Great news, Mr. President! A joint venture with a 50% US stake is a smart move to get millions of people excited worldwide. Thank you for your vision,” Cristian Bancilla, said.
Trump said Sunday on Truth Social that he was working to reinstate the app. He promised to issue an executive order tomorrow, his first day in office, to confirm the extension of the timeline to find new ownership. Additionally, the order will eliminate any liability of service providers offering TikTok to its customers.
Trump is seeking a joint venture, where the United States has a 50% ownership position in the platform.
TikTok confirmed its restoration and thanked Trump. “It’s a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship,” the platform said.
Before TikTok announced its return, Elon Musk said on his rival platform X that he had been against the ban because it goes against free speech.
“That said, the current situation where TikTok is allowed to operate in America, but 𝕏 is not allowed to operate in China is unbalanced,” the putative "First Buddy" to Trump and co-head of the Department of Government Efficiency added. “Something needs to change.”
In the interest of national security, President Joe Biden signed the TikTok ban in 2024, requiring parent company ByteDance to sell the app or face a U.S. ban.
It also allows the government to regulate the American use of social media, resulting in other Chinese apps getting blocked too.
Saturday night Apple banned 11 applications for US-based consumers from ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company and its subsidiaries. The platforms have been taken off of the App Store, (and have yet to be restored) users that already had the apps downloaded couldn’t have full access to the platforms.
