Supreme Court decision on TikTok rattles Taylor Swift fandom, future of #SwifTok
#SwifTok — a Taylor Swift hashtag comprised of more than 350,000 fan-fueled TikTok videos — has been on edge as the social media company's future in the U.S. has been uncertain.
The Supreme Court upheld a law Friday morning telling the app's parent company Byte Dance to sell TikTok by Sunday or face a ban in the U.S.
President Joe Biden signed the legislation into law a year ago on grounds of national security, though his administration doesn't plan to enforce the ban in his last days in office.
President-elect Donald Trump posted Friday on his Truth Social social media platform that he would make a decision on TikTok soon, after reveiwing the situation. He takes office Monday.
Unless there is a last-minute Hail Mary, Apple and Google will no longer be able to offer downloads of the social media app on Sunday. Existing users will still have access and, while international countries will have no problems with the app, TikTok would eventually become unusable in the U.S.
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Swifties rely on the app
Because of TikTok livestreams, every Eras Tour concert was accessible to fans without a ticket. Concertgoers would use their cell phones to broadcast the three-plus-hour concert at every stop. Tens of thousands, sometimes millions, of fans logged on to watch the pixelated show.
"I don't know that the magic of the #SwifTok experience can exist outside of TikTok," says influencer Nikki King, known among Swifties for her well-researched theories on the superstar's possible announcements. "#SwifTok is a place where fans of Taylor Swift who enjoy her art can learn so much more about the depth of her artistry."
King, a creator with 128,000 followers, is a social studies and AP government high school instructor in North Carolina. The app has allowed her to make global friends, travel to concerts abroad and pay off debt.
"I entered the [TikTok] Creator Fund to make enough money, by doing something I love, to cover my car payment," she says, "and I've been doing that for two years now. A lot of my friends have built this into their long-term plan."
One of those friends is full-time influencer Jake Deyton who posts videos on Swift news to a cool 235,000 followers.
"There's a strong sense of community," Deyton says. "Before TikTok, I didn't know any Swifties that were to the scale I was. Seeing that there are so many other people that obsess over her as much as I do makes me feel less weird."
The flexibility of and compensation through TikTok has allowed Deyton to care for his infant son. He's tossed around ideas for what's next if TikTok goes dark. He may put more effort into YouTube Shorts. The challenge is he has nowhere near the audience he's amassed over the years on TikTok.
"I would be sad," Deyton adds. " You spend all this time building a platform and working hard to build an audience, hitting milestones, and then you have to start from zero. I remember where I was when I hit 100,000 followers and 200,000 followers, the first time that I had over a million views."
Swift's history with TikTok
The singer-songwriter with 32 million followers partnered with the platform over the summer.
In June, her team launched an interactive experience where fans could complete tasks to win 11 themed profile frames. Some of the fans who collected every frame received a direct message from Swift's team with tickets to one of her last American shows.
Swift's record label, Universal Music Group, pulled the music of its artists off the app in February. Two months later, Swift struck her own deal to have her songs reinstated, a week before the release of her "Tortured Poets" album.
Testifying to SCOTUS
Chloe Joy Sexton, 30, flew to Washington to listen to oral arguments presented to the Supreme Court on Jan. 10. The TikToker is one of eight content creators named as plantiffs in the lawsuit struck down, and her written testimony was read aloud to the nine justices.
"To say TikTok changed my life is an understatement," Joy Sexton said, reading her testimony, at a TikTok news conference following the oral arguments. " It would destroy both my business and the community that means so much to me. No other platform can replace it. I have tried posting the same exact content on other social media apps without anywhere near the same success."
The Memphis mom of two — who is also the guardian of her 11-year-old sister — launched her cookie company, Chloe's Giant Cookies, in 2020 after she was fired from her job. That, paired with losing her mother to brain cancer, prompted her to use TikTok as a creative outlet, community builder and source of income. She's garnered more than 140,000 followers sharing vulnerable videos.
"My sister Charlotte had a life changing experience with TikTok that she never would have had," Joy Sexton tells the Paste BN Network over FaceTime.
Joy Sexton posted a video on TikTok surprising her elementary school aged sister with Eras Tour tickets to New Orleans. The two passes were concealed inside five era-themed boxes placed inside each other like Russian dolls.
"Charlotte only went to the Eras Tour because somebody found me on TikTok," Joy Sexton says, "related to our story and wrote me, 'I will move heaven and Earth to give you tickets."
Following her statement, an influx of direct messages and comments inundated her app from people inspired by her words. "I can't even touch my direct messages right now," she says.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
With the Jan. 19 deadline fast approaching, what's next?
Some lawmakers are proposing legislation to delay the ban. During his candidacy, Trump made a campaign promise to "save" TikTok once he takes office.
There is also the potential for a buyer to swoop in and purchase TikTok's U.S. assets. Billionaire Frank McCourt made a formal offer in a bid joined by Kevin O'Leary, one of the hosts of the ABC reality series "Shark Tank."
The ban can also be avoided if TikTok severs ties with Bytedance in America or Congress repeals the passed legislation.
Contributing: Greta Cross, Rebecca Morin and Mike Snider
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Follow Bryan West, the Paste BN Network's Taylor Swift reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV.