Shock poll reveals how Americans really feel about TikTok as Trump desperately tries to save it
The public has spoken
TikTok briefly went offline in January after its Chinese parent ByteDance failed to meet the the January 19 deadline to sell off its US operations.
The Supreme Court sided with federal officials who revealed 'well-supported national security concerns.'
Consequently, many so-called 'TikTok refugees' moved to other platforms like Instagram and the Chinese app RedNote to create and watch content.
With President Trump racing to find a US buyer and YouTuber MrBeast placing an official bid, the pressure is on to keep the app alive in the US before the April 5 deadline forces a sale or a ban.
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However, in the meantime, a new national poll has revealed how Americans really feel about TikTok.
According to a national survey obtained by The Post, a whopping 77% of Americans say they are concerned about the Chinese ownership of TikTok.
Additionally, 63% of Americans support a forced sale to US owners or a complete ban on the app, which has over 2 billion active users.
Meanwhile, only 19% think ByteDance should remain in control - although with more US oversight.
“The same people that voted Donald Trump into office do not trust the Chinese Communist Party’s control over TikTok,” Michael Sobolik, an expert on US-China relations and senior fellow at the Hudson Institute. "They want no part of it and they don’t want it to continue.”
Furthermore, 15% were fine with no changes to the current ownership. And a surprising 36% of regular TikTok users support banning the app altogether.
President Trump has until April 5 to find a US buyer for TikTok before his executive order delaying the federal ban expires.
Despite previously calling TikTok a national security risk, Trump has softened his stance, saying he has a 'warm spot' for the platform and even credited it for helping him win the 2024 election.
He's even entertained the idea of the 'United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture.'
Meanwhile, US citizens are concerned about ByteDance's intentions with the video sharing app.
83% of pollsters worry about the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) influence on American culture whilst 84% fear political polarisation getting worse, and 88% of respondents fear misinformation being spread through the app.
The online survey was conducted by The Vandenberg Coalition, which collected the opinions of 1,017 registered voters.
“The survey shows that a forced sale or even outright ban are vastly preferred options to anything that enables China to continue to use TikTok as a fifth column,” said Carrie Filipetti, a former State Dept. official during Trump’s first term and executive director at the Vandenberg Coalition.
More than four in five respondents (81%) said it was urgent to seek a solution to the TikTok issue and, of that, 54% believe the situation is extremely urgent.
“If there is to be a deal or sale, the data is clear – Americans do not want the CCP to have access to their data or algorithm, period,” Filipetti added. “This means we can’t simply replace ByteDance with another Chinese company, or even an American company with joint ventures or headquarters in China, as they’d be subject to precisely the same CCP influence.”