A lot can change in a year — just ask TikTok.
Last year, the US government took the extraordinary step of voting to ban the popular app used by millions of Americans, citing national security concerns.
On Tuesday, the White House became its latest user.
The White House TikTok account launched with a video montage of President Donald Trump narrated by the man himself.
“Every day I wake up determined to deliver a better life for the people all across this nation,” Trump says over images of him with UFC head Dana White, law enforcement officers, and American workers. “I am your voice!”
The account’s second post featured various shots of the White House during different seasons.
The White House joined the app less than a month before it’s set to be banned in the US on September 17 unless it’s sold to a US buyer, though that deadline has already been extended several times.
“The Trump administration is committed to communicating the historic successes President Trump has delivered to the American people with as many audiences and platforms as possible,” Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, said in a statement to Business Insider. “President Trump’s message dominated TikTok during his presidential campaign, and we’re excited to build upon those successes and communicate in a way no other administration has before.”
The White House did not respond to questions about whether the divest-or-ban deadline would be extended again or if a deal was expected by the deadline.
Lawmakers in April 2024 voted to ban TikTok unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, sold its American assets. Some officials cited concerns that sensitive data belonging to American users could end up in the hands of the Chinese government, and members of Congress have said it could be used for Chinese Communist Party propaganda.
TikTok has said it does not share data with the Chinese government.
The TikTok divest-or-ban law, signed by President Joe Biden last year, gave TikTok until January 19 to sell or risk shutting down. The app briefly went dark that day for US-based users before coming back online, with TikTok crediting Trump for its return.
The White House has said the president does not want TikTok to go dark and prefers it be sold. Trump has delayed the divest-or-ban deadline three times since taking office in January.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC last month that TikTok will go dark again unless China agrees to a deal that will give Americans control over the app.
“We’ve made the decision. You can’t have Chinese control and have something on 100 million American phones,” Lutnick said, adding that China’s decision would be coming “very soon.”
TikTok and ByteDance did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
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