Representatives of TikTok faced stern scrutiny from Supreme Court justices on Friday (Jan 10), ahead of the outcome of the app’s fate in the U.S.
The Chinese-owned company has been given an ultimatum to sell or divest the company within nine days, otherwise, it will be banned in the States.
At the time of writing, the appeal hearing is ongoing, after President Joe Biden signed into law a ban on the platform on April 24, 2024.
The crux of the debate is the issue of free speech against national security concerns.
President Biden signed off on the law, following its assent in Congress with strong bipartisan support, but the legislation has been fiercely contested. TikTok’s parent company ByteDance has put up a vigorous defense of its position, insisting the ban is unconstitutional, contravening the free speech rights of its 170 million American users.
There is an obvious commercial angle to this for the defendants, given the importance of the U.S. market for the company
Facing a looming ban in the US, TikTok's fate will be in the hands of the Supreme Court in a case being argued that pits free speech rights against national security concerns over the widely used app owned by Chinese company ByteDance https://t.co/BgV64iMaoV pic.twitter.com/1V2RzCqWTm
— Reuters (@Reuters) January 10, 2025
Opposing arguments heard by the Supreme Court
Nine Supreme Court justices heard the arguments put forward on both sides of the debate, eliciting the strength of the cases for TikTok’s right to trade in the U.S. and also the government’s national security position.
Elizabeth Prelogar, a lawyer representing the US government, argued that as TikTok is owned by a “foreign adversary”, it would be weaponized to harm America and its interests.
“We know China has a veracious appetite to get its hands on as much information about Americans as possible,” she added, referencing TikTok as a “potent weapon” that can be used to that effect.
Conversely, Jeffrey Fisher, a lawyer representing TikTok’s creators asserted the act “directly restricts the First Amendment rights of American creators to participate and speak in what the Court called a little less than a decade ago ‘the modern public square'”.
“Restricting speech because it might sew doubt about our leaders or undermine democracy are the kind of things our enemies do”, he said, before insisting that American creators have the right to work with whatever publishers they choose to.
It remains unclear when the Supreme Court will announce its final decision on the case.
A timely verdict would bring an element of clarity, while there is a chance the decision will not be announced until after the ban deadline on January 19.
Given the sheer weight and implications of the situation, as well as the expedited sitting of the appeal hearing, it appears more likely that a conclusion will arrive sooner, rather than later.
Image credit: Via Midjourney
