Group of TikTok creators sue US government over potential ban

Eight creators on the social media platform TikTok sued the federal government on Tuesday, after a new law from Congress could end the use of the app in the United States.

Congress passed the law, which will require the Chinese company that owns the app to divest its shares in the U.S. or face a ban of the app in American app stores, as part of a major foreign aid package last month.

The group of creators claim the new law, which has been signed by President Joe Biden, violates their First Amendment rights by being "overbroad." Supporters of the law claimed that the app poses a danger to national security. But the creators pushed back and said there was no proof of the national security risks.

“The government cannot ban a medium for communication because it believes that medium is used to transmit foreign ‘propaganda’ or other protected content,” the lawsuit reads, per The Hill. “Nor does the government have any actual, non-speculative evidence that banning TikTok in its current form enhances Americans’ data security, or that its ban is narrowly tailored to accomplish that objective."

TikTok and ByteDance, the parent company of the social media app, have also sued the federal government over the new law, claiming it was unconstitutional because a large sale of the app was not possible in the timeframe they were given. The Chinese company was given nine months to sell the app, or one year if a sale is in the works by the end of that nine month deadline.

Despite the argument that a sale is not possible so quickly, a few potential buyers have already expressed interest, including former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, and former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt. 

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.