In the past few years, TikTok has become a mainstream source of entertainment and advertising. With an extensive collection of content, users enjoy making, sharing, and interacting with short videos from their friends, celebrities, and famous influencers. The app has consumed a flock of users and many BSM students are among them.

However, the endless entertainment that this app provides is at risk. On March 13th, U.S. President Joe Biden signed a provision that could potentially ban TikTok nationally. According to NBC News, this new legislation is an ultimatum giving ByteDance, TikTok’s Beijing-based parent company, 9-12 months to sell the app to an American company, or the app will be banned nationwide. The earliest this ban could be placed into action is January of 2025, with few options for extension. While this is not the first threat to the app’s nationwide ban, the feasibility of the proposal and the potential impacts of a full ban have sparked controversy and mixed opinions among BSM students.

According to CBS News, lawmakers and security professionals have justified the passing of this bill as fears arise of the possibility that China could have access to the personal data of millions of U.S. users or the ability to use the app to spread harmful misinformation. Some BSM students share the same concern. However, this raises the question of whether banning TikTok is the most effective solution to ensure the safety of users. “I think [the possibilities of spreading misinformation through TikTok] is harmful, but I feel like if [ByteDance] sold it, I feel somehow they figured out a way to keep it,” sophomore Harper Stevenson-Shimek said.

Additionally, some BSM students have expressed support for the ban due to some of the negative effects that TikTok has on students. TikTok is known to be an addicting platform with an algorithm engineered to appeal to the users’ interests, which is known to encapsulate the long-term attention of users. Some BSM students have found that this can be harmful to their education as the app is often distracting from their studies. A ban may ultimately promote more academic success for students. “A TikTok ban would probably have a positive impact on my life, I’m not [going to] lie, because I would get off of it. And I’d be forced to do other stuff like focus on school and do my homework,” junior Audrey Anderson said.

A TikTok ban may also help limit the impact social media has on teenager’s self-image and mental health. On the app, users post “inside scoops” into their lives, but many only highlight the positive aspects of their lives. Many use TikTok and other social media platforms to exude false confidence and promote an unhealthy comparison of their life to other users. BSM students have seen the detrimental effects that it inflicts upon their own self-images. In addition, some students argue that TikTok provides an open platform for cyberbullying and hate, and its impacts may be limited with a ban. However, this once again raises the question: how effective would a ban be in limiting these issues? “I know that TikTok is a really harmful platform, especially for teenage girls. I would go on it and I would get off and then feel so self-conscious because I would see people who look really pretty and I would feel bad. There’s also so much bullying on TikTok [with] people making fun of each other. And I think that would go down, but I feel like people would find other means to do it,” senior Demetra Walsma said.

Although students have found some silver linings to the potential ban, students have also raised concerns about how it would affect the positive aspects of the app. TikTok provides a main source of social interaction for many teenagers who connect with friends through the app by sharing videos. “[TikTok] is a way for me to communicate with my friends, build friendships in a sense, create inside jokes, and get closer with people and get to know their humor. I don’t see my friends all the time, so being able to communicate with them through that app has really helped me build friendships and even meet new people with the same interests as me,” Walsma said.