TikTok is not backing down! 🎵 On Monday, the popular video-sharing app and its Chinese parent company ByteDance stood before a US federal appeals court, challenging a new law that could see TikTok banned across the country. 😱
The law, expected to kick in as early as January 19 next year, demands that ByteDance sell or divest TikTok's US assets. If they don't, TikTok could vanish from American phones! 📵 President Joe Biden signed off on this law in April after Congress gave it the green light.
During an intense two-hour hearing, TikTok's attorney Andrew Pincus told the three-judge panel that the law is totally unfair and singles out TikTok and its 170 million US users. \"This law is unprecedented, and its effect would be staggering,\" Pincus said. \"For the first time in history, Congress has expressly targeted a specific US speaker, banning its speech and the speech of millions of Americans.\" 🗣️
Pincus argued that the law violates the First Amendment rights, which protect free speech in the US Constitution. He also pointed out that the government hasn't shown enough evidence that TikTok is a national security threat, as the Justice Department claims. ⚖️
Another attorney, speaking up for content creators who love TikTok, said the law could affect all US speakers and compared it to banning Americans from using other foreign-owned media platforms like Spotify or Al Jazeera. 🎧📺
In their lawsuit filed in May, TikTok and ByteDance warned that this law could set a dangerous example, letting Congress sidestep constitutional protections by just shouting \"national security!\" They emphasized that targeting a single platform like this is an overreach that stops Americans from being part of a global community of over 1 billion users. 🌍
So what's next? We'll have to wait and see what the judges decide. But one thing's for sure: TikTok and its fans aren't giving up without a fight! ✊
(With input from agencies)
Reference(s):
TikTok challenges U.S. ban law, citing free speech violations
cgtn.com
