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º£½ÇÉçÇø — The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a new law banning the China corporation-owned social media app TikTok, opening a path without precedent in the social media landscape.

Virginia Tech media and political communications expert shared thoughts on the decision’s significance and consequences.

“The U.S. Supreme Court’s TikTok decision is a watershed moment for social media and its operations in the United States. The per curiam court decision emphasized the uniqueness of the technology, its pervasiveness of its impact, and the national security implications of its operations.  It represents a major change in digital sovereignty, and shows the delicate balance between national security concerns, free speech, and the global digital economy,” Myers said.

“The court held that the law was not one that required the highest level of speech scrutiny, known as strict scrutiny, and that the divestiture law does not violate the First Amendment. The court’s decision presents new questions about implementation because the original law gave ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, until Jan. 19 to sell.  Given that short timeframe, it is unclear what the next steps will be for the company, although some sources have speculated it is going to shut down on Sunday. The law doesn’t directly ban the platform if ByteDance does not sell — instead app stores cannot distribute it. Those violating the law face penalties up to $5,000 per user who can access the app. Currently TikTok has approximately 170 million users in the U.S.,” he said.

“Against this backdrop, the new Trump administration takes over Jan. 20. President Trump has signaled that he may intervene, and it is possible he may sign an executive order protecting the platform. However, there are questions if that type of order could stop the law from going into effect,” Myers said.

About Myers
Cayce Myers is a professor of public relations and director of graduate studies at the at Virginia Tech. His work focuses on media history, political communication, and laws that affect public relations practice. He is the author of “Public Relations History: Theory, Practice, and Profession” and “Profession and Money in Politics: Campaign Fundraising in the 2020 Presidential Election.” Read more .     

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