How U.S. Control Could Change TikTok

Changes Are Imminent

For everyday users who mostly watch cooking videos, the latest dance challenge, or dog compilations, little may seem different after the U.S. takes control of TikTok. But for creators, activists, and anyone using the platform as a news source, the shift could be seismic. 

Isra Ali, a clinical assistant professor at New York University’s Steinhardt School who teaches classes about social media, described the sale as “more of a political negotiation than a traditional deal" done for economic reasons. 

“I think if your content on TikTok has been largely entertainment, I don’t think you can expect much of a change,” Ali said. “But if you’ve been engaging in TikTok as a political commentator of any sort, you are likely going to see less reach and maybe less access to content that you normally interact with.”

Ali notes that she has already seen political creators reporting suppressed reach. That, she says, is not accidental.

“The Trump administration identifies TikTok as a place where criticism of Trump flows freely,” she said. She pointed to the infamous Trump 2020 rally where young TikTok users registered en masse for tickets as a prank, only for the venue to end up half-empty. “Things like that really raised the ire of the Trump administration and caused them to view TikTok not just as a random group of users, but as some kind of organized force in opposition to them.”

If Oracle and a Trump-aligned board take control of the algorithm, political criticism may not completely disappear, but it could be made harder to find. 

“It’s going to be really about wanting to try to manage what information people have access to,” Ali said. “And trying to insert the Trump administration’s perspective as much as possible.”

TikTok has long been more than lip-syncing and dances. It became a lifeline for decentralized, real-time information-sharing, from updates on Black Lives Matter protests to news on the war in Gaza. Jennifer Grygiel, an associate professor at Syracuse University, warns that this role is directly under threat. 

“That's ultimately [what’s] making the American government nervous here: It’s the discourse,” Grygiel said. "So [this deal] starts to feel like the government was interested in curtailing the ability for Americans to actually discuss politics in a way that they wanted and felt was useful and rewarding to them. That's concerning.”

“Last time I checked, Americans should be able to view and read and publish into the global public sphere, not just the American sphere," they added. 

What once made TikTok magnetic may soon be sanded down to fit a U.S. narrative.

“The deal isn’t being done just by corporate interests," Grygiel said. "It was orchestrated by the United States government. For me, that just shows real influence over the app. I don’t really consider TikTok to still be the same app.”

While some are concerned about the U.S. government controlling free speech to a degree, others worry about TikTok’s increasing tilt toward commerce. Bella Tabak, a senior at Syracuse University who has watched TikTok evolve since its Musical.ly days, fears the app will devolve further into a shopping feed than it already has. 

“If you can buy that product through the TikTok shop, they’ll push it into the algorithm more,” she said. “But if it’s something that’s not on the TikTok shop, they’re not going to push it.”

As someone who posts about sustainable fashion, Tabak sees the writing on the wall. “When I post about how I found this vintage pair of boots at Goodwill, are they not going to push my content because you can’t buy that?” she said. 

A First in U.S. Tech History

What makes this case especially unusual is the mechanism behind it. Typically, the U.S. government reins in tech giants using antitrust laws, and the crux of the hearings are about breaking up a monopoly the company might have, as it did with Facebook. This time, though, the government is using legislation to force the outright sale of a foreign-owned app.

“There’s no one on any side of the political spectrum that comes out in opposition of freedom of speech,” Ali says. “So the government really has to balance its attempts to curtail the influence of social media platforms with that commitment. The TikTok situation is really the first time the government has said explicitly it's a problem that it's owned by foreign entities."

What’s Next?

If history is any guide, workarounds will emerge. Instagram’s “finstas,” X’s alt accounts, Reddit’s sub-communities are all signs that people will adapt when platforms shift.

Ali, Grygiel, and Tabak all predict TikTok users will do the same. VPNs could mask locations. Some may abandon the app altogether. Others may drift back toward long-form media, whether movies, books, or forums.

“But as a primary user base, Gen Z understands this isn’t the same TikTok they loved before,” Grygiel said. “It’s starting to look like one more American social media platform that’s coming under the influence of the U.S. government.”

The risk, they add, is self-censorship. Since the current administration in some way will be in control of the algorithm, they could see users tailoring their content to fit what will perform best. 

“This isn’t just social media,” Grygiel said. "This is something we even see in higher education. It shapes research when you are able to get certain grants under the current Trump administration and then other grants are canceled. If the U.S. is applying influence here, now it’s able to pick the winners.”

Tabak is more blunt. 

“People should be trying to go back to long-form content," she said. "Reading a book, watching a movie. That’s probably better for our mental health.”

Ali said that since this deal isn’t happening behind closed doors, users will be quick to call out changes. 

“TikTok users are already talking about this sale," she said. “So what you’ll see is a heightened sensitivity to any types of changes, people bringing that to attention. But ultimately, the algorithm is there to push advertising. That’s the real endgame.”