This Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court leaned toward supporting a law that could lead to TikTok’s shutdown in the country unless its parent company, China-based ByteDance, divests from the platform by January 19, as mandated by the legislation.
The High Court held a nearly three-hour hearing, requested by the platform, to assess whether the law violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution—which guarantees freedom of speech, as TikTok argues—or if national security concerns over potential Chinese government interference, as claimed by the federal administration, take precedence.
What’s Next for TikTok?
The law, passed by Congress in April 2024 with bipartisan support, gave ByteDance nine months to find a buyer from a country not considered an “adversary” of the U.S.
After exhausting all appeals in lower courts without success, TikTok and its creators petitioned the Supreme Court to review the law’s constitutionality. They also highlighted the significance of the law taking effect on President Joe Biden’s last day in office—just before Republican Donald Trump is sworn in on January 20—as a compelling reason to delay its enforcement.
During the initial portion of the hearing, featuring arguments from TikTok’s attorney and a representative for content creators, the justices focused on the Chinese government’s potential influence over the platform.
One proposed solution from the justices was to extend the deadline for TikTok to sever ties with ByteDance, allowing the platform to remain operational in the U.S. However, TikTok’s defense dismissed this idea, citing the immense difficulty of complying within any extended timeframe.
Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued that TikTok’s data collection practices and alleged content manipulation pose significant threats to national security. While some justices appeared skeptical about claims of content manipulation, Prelogar maintained that evidence of data harvesting alone justified upholding the law.
The Supreme Court has moved unusually quickly on this case, suggesting a prompt decision on the law’s enforcement could be forthcoming, with a more detailed opinion to follow. If the court ultimately upholds the federal law, TikTok’s operations in the U.S. will cease on January 19, as ByteDance has indicated it will shut down the platform if it loses the case.
Meanwhile, President-elect Donald Trump, who attempted to ban TikTok during his first term, urged the Supreme Court to delay the law’s implementation until he assumes office. The Republican, who pledged during his campaign to “save TikTok,” reportedly met with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, according to media reports.
This article was originally written in Spanish by Miguel Fernandez in CC News.
