Can Donald Trump, avid TikTok user and China critic, save the platform from a US ban?

Republican loyalty test brews as president-elect’s support this year for popular social-media app runs headlong into tough-on-Beijing vows

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Donald Trump attends a gala at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on November 14. Photo: Getty Images/TNS

Khushboo Razdanin WashingtonandKawala Xiein Washington

Published: 12:12am, 22 Nov 2024Updated: 12:51am, 22 Nov 2024

“Today is the day – get out and vote,” Donald Trump urged in a November 5 message on TikTok, a highly popular social-media platform whose controversial impending ban lays bare an underlying Sino-American tension since the Republican’s first presidency.

Although Trump has yet to post on his personal TikTok account since winning the election, he turned to the video app during his campaign to engage young Americans. Nearly 30 per cent of TikTok’s 170 million US-based users are between 25 and 34 years old.

“I am gonna save TikTok,” Trump promised in a June post that got more than 8 million likes. Currently the president-elect has more than 14 million followers on the platform.

In the two months between now and US Inauguration Day and amid substantial unease in Washington about data security, a question looms: can Trump indeed save TikTok?

Trump, both as a 2024 presidential candidate and during his first administration, took pride in being tough on China, threatening in his successful campaign this year to impose hefty tariffs on mainland imports.

Whatever direction Trump pursues on TikTok could offer a glimpse into his broader approach towards Beijing. The path is far from straightforward.