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Supreme Court Upholds Law to Ban TikTok in the United States

Supreme Court Leans Towards TikTok Ban

Rudy Smith, Reporter

September 16, 2025

Getty Images

WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 10: A TikTok influencer holds a sign that reads “Keep TikTok” outside the U.S. Supreme Court Building as the court hears oral arguments on whether to overturn or delay a law that could lead to a ban of TikTok in the U.S., on January 10, 2025 in Washington, DC. The future of the popular social media plaform is at stake at stake as the Supreme Court hears arguments on a law set to take effect the day before Inauguration Day that would force their China-based parent company to cut ties with TikTok due to national security concerns. (Photo by Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)

TikTok, launched in 2018, is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, and as of 2025, it was the most downloaded app in the world. On January 10, 2025, the Supreme Court considered a case to uphold a law that would ban the social media platform in the United States. The nine justices on the conservative-majority court heard oral arguments from lawyers for TikTok, some of the platform’s users, and the Biden administration.

Although the justices did not appear convinced by TikTok’s free speech arguments, there remains some uncertainty over how the court will handle the case. If there is no deal by September 17, 2025, the app could face a US ban.

However, TikTok is used throughout the United States, bringing many people together and sparking creativity. I personally think that TikTok shouldn’t get banned. It has brought so many people together and has helped small businesses grow. People also use it for global community building and for social awareness.

The law in question, enacted with broad bipartisan support, requires the China-based TikTok owner, ByteDance, to divest itself of the company. If no sale takes place, the platform used by millions of Americans would “go dark”, according to the company’s lawyer, Noel Fransisco.

TikTok and some of its users sued to block the measure, saying it violates their free speech rights under the Constitution’s First Amendment.

The court is weighing those arguments against the government’s defence of the law on national security guards over concerns that the Chinese government could exert influence. Those threats of those penalties could make TikTok go dark on Sunday, the company said late Friday in a post on X. However, a deal has been reached between the Trump administration and China to keep TikTok operational in the United States, administration officials announced Monday. TikTok’s seemingly nonstop legal limbo has shown widespread confusion among users over when or if the app will stop working one day. TikTok is one of the most popular social media platforms, and people finding out that the app will shut down one day is troubling. There is no doubt that more than 170 million Americans, TikTok has brought so many people together; without it, there might be some problems with social skills. ” We conclude that the challenged provisions do not violate petitioners’ First Amendment rights.” A foreign adversary wrote this in court.

About the Contributor

Rudy Smith, Reporter

Rudy Smith is a freshman with six siblings who enjoys sharing his experiences about his travels and writing with his peers, as well as his hobbies, which include writing, reading, and traveling. He mostly travels to California, where he hits the beach, visits the Walk of Fame, and goes to the Griffith Observatory. He is very passionate about writing, which is why he joined The Paper Cut. He is an African American and loves living in Tucson. He is determined to grow as a person throughout his high school years. He even plans to venture out of his comfort zone and attend the University of Arizona.

He believes that writing is his path to his future and success. He plans to inspire people with his writing in the future and would like to grow as a reporter and then editor by taking The Paper Cut for the rest of his high school years to learn more about how to write news articles and writing in general. He plans to try his best at work, focusing on writing amazing stories. Despite not having very good handwriting, he always continues to write about his life and about what is going on around the world.