Many tech leaders and tech firms have turned to President-elect Donald J. Trump in current weeks. From Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, they’ve visited Mr. Trump at Mar-a-Lago, lavished him with X and donated to his inaugural fund.
However TikTok has taken these strategies to the subsequent degree.
Because the Chinese language-owned social media app fights a federal regulation banning it from the US until it’s offered, it has publicly talked about after which thanked Mr. Trump for his help in statements and movies since Friday . He even embedded his flattery proper into the app for its 170 million US customers to see:
“Because of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is again within the US!” learn a pop-up message on Sunday.
TikTok’s chief government, Shou Chew, filmed his personal thank-you video for Mr Trump final week, even referencing the president’s private TikTok account. Mr. Chu additionally visited Mr. Trump at Mar-a-Lago and was invited to sit down in an honored place on the podium at Mr. Trump’s inauguration on Monday.
TikTok “will do every part it could possibly to please the authorities” whereas dealing with this ban, stated Anupam Chander, a professor of regulation and know-how at Georgetown College and an professional on the worldwide regulation of latest applied sciences.
“TikTok is searching for the president’s favor in these methods as a result of their very existence on this nation will depend on it,” Mr. Chander stated in an interview on Sunday. “He is their lifeline, in order that they make sure that they keep on his good facet.”
TikTok didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Mr. Trump could not have the ability to save the app in the long term, as he has introduced. He vowed early Sunday to challenge an government order to offer ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese language proprietor, extra time to make a sale that will fulfill the regulation, however it’s unclear whether or not he would possibly lengthen the deadline now that the regulation has taken impact – or if it refers to a sale that meets the circumstances of the regulation. Mr. Trump seems dedicated. Even earlier than his publish promising an government order, he posted on social media platform Fact Social in all caps: “SAVE TIKTOK!”
The Biden administration additionally sought to make clear this weekend that TikTok didn’t want to shut on Sundays to adjust to the regulation, calling the choice to go darkish a “stunt.”
“Now we have made our place clear and plain: motion to implement this regulation shall be as much as the subsequent administration,” White Home press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre stated in a press release.
Mr. Trump’s help for TikTok is comparatively new. Throughout his first time period, he tried to ban the app within the nation until ByteDance offered it to an American firm.
However in March 2024. he modified his place throughout a gathering with Jeff Yass, a billionaire investor and Republican megadonor who owns a big stake in ByteDance. Mr. Trump has they said they don’t focus on the corporate. Mr. Yass helped discovered the buying and selling agency Susquehanna Worldwide Group.
TikTok additionally sought a connection to Republicans and the Trump marketing campaign by Tony Sayegh, a former Treasury Division official in Mr. Trump’s administration. Mr. Sayegh, who heads public affairs for Susquehanna, was a serious a part of the Trump marketing campaign’s choice to affix TikTok this summer season.
Mr. Trump was instant hit on TikTok, the place he already has over 14 million followers. A number of members of his household, together with Donald Trump Jr. and his granddaughter Kai Trump, have additionally joined the app.
