TikTok creators are urging users to help #KeepTikTok
Thousands of TikTok users, many of whom say they’ve built entire livelihoods and communities on the app, are responding to the company’s plea to #KeepTikTok by urging against its potential ban.
Thousands of TikTok users, many of whom say they’ve built entire livelihoods and communities on the app, are responding to the company’s plea to #KeepTikTok by urging against its potential ban.
The platform of more than 1 billion monthly active users is facing a bill that would force ByteDance, its China-based parent company, to divest TikTok or risk its ban from U.S. app stores.
This has galvanized a resurgence in videos under the hashtag #KeepTikTok, which initially gained traction a year ago — after TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew appeared before Congress to field blistering questions about whether the app posed a national security risk. Now, TikTok is calling for help by promoting the campaign to its vast network of creators.
“Act now to protect your freedom to create,” the company wrote in a social media statement Saturday. “Share a video expressing what TikTok means to you or how it has positively impacted your life, and use the #KeepTikTok hashtag. You can also encourage your audience to tell Congress to vote NO on the TikTok ban bill.”
JT Laybourne, a longtime TikTok creator who has amassed 1.7 million followers on the app, is among those who put out an emotional call to action, sharing his frustration at the possibility of losing the digital space in which he’s built a full-time income stream and found community.
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