TikTok’s last stand
TikTok presented its case to the U.S. Supreme Court last week, arguing against a possible nationwide ban. The bill, signed by President Joe Biden in April 2024, gives ByteDance until Jan. 19 to sell the social network or face a ban in the country.
In the session, (which was TikTok’s last legal position against the ban) the platform’s lawyer said that TikTok is prepared to “go dark” unless the Supreme Court intervenes. The company noted that the ban is a content-based free speech restriction, as the U.S. government is concerned that ByteDance could force TikTok to adjust its content mix by making it pro-Chinese or anti-American. It would also impede creators from exercising their free speech rights to work with a foreign company that publishes their work.
According to the app, the law ignores a less restrictive alternative: simply prohibiting TikTok from sharing sensitive user data with anyone, including China. The platform’s lawyer argues that if the government is concerned about China accessing sensitive data of U.S. citizens, it should also be concerned about access to Chinese e-commerce apps like Temu and Shein.
Meanwhile, the Department of Justice said the law is not intended to regulate free speech on the platform. Instead, it aims to eliminate a foreign country’s ability to obtain U.S. data and exert control over the platform. If China has access to Americans’ personal information, the Department noted that it would have data on a generation of teens who could go on to hold key positions, such as in the CIA or FBI, which could create chaos.
Now that both sides have presented their arguments, several outcomes are possible. If TikTok loses the case, the app will shut down. If the Supreme Court issues a preliminary injunction, TikTok would buy some time to receive a lifeline from President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office a day after the deadline and has since asked the Supreme Court to pause the law. TikTok could also get an extension of the Jan. 19 deadline to find a buyer.
X updates to label parody accounts
X will start tagging satirical or parody profiles to differentiate them from other accounts. In a statement, the X Security Team said the new tags will be attached to both parody profiles and their posts.
The social network said the change is because in the past, users have mistaken posts from parody accounts for authentic statements made by real people or entities. “We are rolling out profile tags for parody accounts to clearly distinguish these types of accounts and their content on our platform,” the company wrote. “We have designed these tags to increase transparency and ensure that users are not misled into believing that these accounts belong to the parodied entity.”
Currently, the accounts can pin the tag on the social network’s settings page, however the platform said the tags will soon be mandatory for all parody profiles. X noted that these accounts must still comply with the platform’s rules, including its authenticity rules, which prohibit users from using fake characters or impersonating others.
The move comes amid growing concerns about the spread of false information online, especially on social media platforms. Last week, Meta announced it would end its third-party fact-checking program, and instead adopt the Community Notes model used by X, a feature that relies on crowdsourcing to flag potentially misleading content. Since making the announcement, Google searches on how to delete Facebook, Instagram and Threads accounts experienced spikes in the U.S.
