Listen live to TikTok’s final pleas against possible ban in Supreme Court
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Watch live as the US Supreme Court hears oral arguments in a bid by TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, to block a law intended to force the sale of the app by 19 January or face a ban on national security grounds.
TikTok's parent company is based in China, and the US government says that means it is a potential national security threat. Chinese authorities could force it to hand over sensitive data on the huge number of Americans who use it or could influence the spread of information on the platform, they say.
An appeals court has upheld the law, which bans TikTok unless it's sold.
The law is set to take effect one day before a new term begins for President-elect Donald Trump, who has 14.7 million followers on the platform. The Republican says he wants to “save TikTok."
His message represents a dramatic change from his past stance on the app.
In July 2020, he told reporters, “We’re banning them from the United States,” and later sought to do so via executive order, though TikTok later overturned the ban in court.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments