TikTok users bombard Congress with phone calls to save their favorite app

TikTok, the massively popular mobile viral video platform, has gone on the offensive to stop Congress from implementing a "total ban on TikTok." 

Users in the U.S., which account for more than 170 million monthly active TikTok users, were served a pop-up message on Thursday urging them to call their representatives in Congress to voice their opposition to a bill that would ban the app in the U.S.

And it appears these pop-ups worked. Congress has been bombarded with phone calls from TikTok users of all ages standing up for their favorite social media platform.

"Kids literally told our office they were calling from recess earlier today," one Congressional staffer told Mashable. The staffer asked to remain anonymous because they were communicating to the press without permission through unofficial channels.

While the callers' demographics may skew younger than usual, TikTok users of all ages responded to TikTok's call-to-action.

“It’s so so bad. Our phones have not stopped ringing," said one GOP staffer in a report from Politico. "They’re teenagers and old people saying they spend their whole day on the app and we can't take it away."

One staffer told the outlet that their office surpassed 1,000 calls specifically concerning the TikTok bill.

However, while Politico's report focused on Republicans, Mashable's source emphasized that Democratic members of Congress were hearing from TikTok users too. "It's everyone," the Congressional staffer told Mashable, and added, "The calls are OVERWHELMINGLY from children."

The bill to ban TikTok

TikTok is using its very powerful reach to rally its users against a proposed bill to ban Chinese apps in the U.S.

The bipartisan bill isn't being voted on yet, but it did just make its way through the House Energy and Commerce Committee where a unanimous vote advanced the legislation.

TikTok won't be outright banned by the bill, its supporters argue. It gives the company a choice to be sold off by Chinese-based owner ByteDance – Republican Representative Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, a cosponsor of the bill, is framing it as a "divestiture" – or be banned from app stores in the U.S.

The White House has recently voiced its support for the bill to potentially ban TikTok – but did not endorse it. Still, it's an interesting move from President Joe Biden, who just joined the platform last month specifically to reach out to young voters.

There were attempts to ban TikTok under the Trump administration, but those plans appeared to fizzle out after a short time. In response to the data and privacy concerns, however, TikTok did go through with a partnership with the U.S.-based company Oracle.

Now, there's a renewed push to legislate against the company, and TikTok is proactively taking action with the help of its users. Will representatives consider its constituents who called in support of their favorite app? That remains to be seen more broadly, but the House Energy and Commerce Committee today was certainly not swayed.

While TikTok may be successful in rallying its troops, a source tells Politico that the calls may be "backfiring." The lines are so busy that some Republican Congresspeople are getting "incensed" and are now leaning towards supporting the bill.