President Donald Trump
Trump Says He Will Issue Executive Order Jan. 20 Delaying TikTok Ban in the U.S.
January 19, 2025
President-elect Donald Trump Jan. 19 said he would issue an executive order on Jan. 20 following his inauguration, delaying the current U.S. operating ban on the TikTok social media platform used by 170 million Americans.
Trump made the announcement on his Truth Social platform.
“I’m asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark!,” Trump wrote. “I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security. The order will also confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order.”
TikTok, which is owned and operated by China’s ByteDance, began going dark Saturday evening ahead of the bipartisan Congressional law passed last April, and signed by President Biden, outlawing the platform due to national security concerns.
Lawmakers argued that the China’s communist party could influence myriad videos with propaganda, in addition to gleaning intel on American users. The law mandated TikTok sell its U.S. operations to a third-party or cease operating domestically.
Notably, Trump lobbied for a TikTok ban during his first term as president. Now, ByteDance CEO Shou Chews is slated to attend Trump’s inauguration.
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