Supreme Court upholds law that could force TikTok to shut down in US

David G. Savage, Los Angeles Times on Jan 17, 2025

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WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law that calls for the shutdown of the U.S. operations of social media app TikTok due to privacy and security concerns related to its Chinese owner.

The justices in a unanimous opinion said the 2024 law does not violate the 1st Amendment or its protection for freedom of speech. The ruling means 170 million Americans may lose access to the popular social media platform as soon as Sunday.

"There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community," the court said in an unsigned opinion. "But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok's data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary. .. we conclude that the challenged provisions do not violate petitioners' 1st Amendment rights."

The decision appears to leave the U.S. fate of TikTok to either a last-minute sale by its Chinese owners, or a reprieve from President Biden or President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump takes office on Monday, the day after the shut-down law is due to take effect. Recently, Trump has said he will try to work out a deal that keeps TikTok in operation, presumably by separating it from Chinese government control.

Last year, the House and Senate by large bipartisan votes approved the shut-down law, citing national security fears that ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, was gathering data on tens of millions of Americans.

Congress decided TikTok must separate itself from its ownership by a "foreign adversary."

In defense of the law, U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the justices that TikTok and ByteDance "collect vast swaths of data about tens of millions of Americans," which China "could use for espionage or blackmail."

Biden and his administration tried and failed to make progress on a separation agreement. Government lawyers told the court they did not find ByteDance to be trustworthy.

But Trump may see it differently. Though he originally supported efforts to ban TikTok in the U.S., he recently changed his position. "I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok," Trump said last month.

One provision of the law allows the president to give TikTok a 90-day extension if it is determined there has been "significant progress" toward arranging a "qualified divestiture" from its foreign owners.