Image credit: The Byteline

American TikTok creators are urging their followers to find them on rival platforms like Instagram and YouTube as the app faces a looming ban in the United States. The call to action comes after a federal appeals court upheld a law requiring TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell its U.S. operations to an American firm by January 19 or face prohibition.

TikTok, a major player in the U.S. digital landscape with 170 million users, has become particularly popular among younger audiences thanks to its engaging short videos. It has also disrupted the advertising market, drawing ad dollars away from larger U.S. competitors and launching TikTok Shop, a thriving commerce platform for small businesses.

The U.S. Congress has long expressed concerns that TikTok's Chinese ownership could pose security risks, alleging that ByteDance may be collecting sensitive data on American users. Despite years of political threats, many users and creators dismissed the possibility of a ban. However, Friday’s court ruling has changed the tone, with creators now preparing for the app’s potential shutdown.

Creators voice concerns over economic impact

“For the first time, I’m realizing that a lot of what I worked for could disappear,” said Chris Mowrey, a Democratic social media influencer with 470,000 TikTok followers. “I don’t think it’s been talked about enough how damaging this will be economically for small businesses and creators.”

Content creators have taken to TikTok to share their concerns and encourage followers to connect with them on other platforms. Chris Burkett, who has 1.3 million followers for his men’s lifestyle content, expressed doubt about the app’s future in the U.S. “I don’t think there’s longevity on this app in the United States,” he said in a video, directing his audience to follow him on Instagram, YouTube, X, and Threads.

Creators like SnipingForDom, a food and travel content producer with 898,000 followers, echoed similar sentiments. “We’ve put so many years and so much time into building our community here,” he said. While he remains hopeful that TikTok will endure, he’s proactively encouraging followers to connect with him on Instagram.

The potential ban, which could still be appealed to the Supreme Court, represents a major threat to TikTok’s creators and small businesses that rely on the platform for visibility and sales. For many, it’s not just about losing a platform—it’s about losing an entire community and economic ecosystem they’ve built over years.

As the January 19 deadline approaches, creators are left navigating uncertainty, weighing their options, and preparing for what could be a seismic shift in the U.S. social media landscape.

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