If you are a TikTok user and went on your phone on the evening of Jan. 18 or the morning of Jan. 19, chances are things looked a little different for you.
While the photo and video content was all the same, one thing was missing. Americans.
Two hours before a new law upheld by the Supreme Court was set to come into effect on Jan. 19—a ruling that essentially banned the app in the U.S.—TikTok shut down access to its American users.
The anticipation leading up to that moment, not just in the U.S. but also across the globe, was at an all-time high, and to say that the social media world fell into utter chaos, would probably be an understatement.
While a number of these content creators were admittedly worried about losing their jobs due to TikTok being their main source of income, many of them fell into the ‘panic posting’ trap and left fans with a sour taste in their mouths.
TikTok stars alike jumped on a trend which saw them divulge last minute secrets and confessions as they prepared for the beloved app to never return.
At the same time, somehow forgetting that things that are posted on the internet never really go away—something I really thought we all would have realized by now.
Users who built their platforms off video series such as “get ready with me” chats or exercise regimes admitted that their video content at times—if not all the time—was partly a lie.
One creator admitted to never drinking the coffee she made for her “coffee chat” series and others that their most popular videos were staged skits.
But when TikTok shared less than 24 hours later that the app was back “as a result of President Trump’s efforts,” many users backtracked on their statements or deleted the confessional videos to try and save their images.
But for the people outside of the U.S., like us Squamish folk, the short-lived ban gave users a chance to see content from other countries.
The Supreme Court of America notes that around 170 million Americans use the app daily, so it’s no wonder that a Squamish user would be hard-pressed to find a video from a content creator outside of the U.S. on any given scrolling session.
But the break gave a glimpse into an American-free app, and many users were quick to post about how nice it was to see content from more Australians or Canadians.
While we are likely to keep a hold of TikTok for the near future at least, there are a few lessons that we Canadians could take from our neighbours’ experience.
One: Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. No app is guaranteed to be around forever.
Two: Be your honest self. The truth always comes out in the end, so you’re better off being honest from the get-go.
Three: If TikTok ever gets banned in Canada, try not to panic because, depending on who runs our country, it could be back in less than 24 hours.
But in saying all of this … come follow us on TikTok @squamishchief.
