TikTok remains one of the most widely used social media platforms in the United States, but its ownership by the Chinese company ByteDance has led to ongoing national security concerns. In 2020, former President Donald Trump first threatened to ban the app. In 2024, former President Joe Biden signed a law requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok to a U.S. company or face a nationwide ban. That same year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation reinforcing the requirement.
With over 170 million Americans relying on TikTok for networking, trends, business, and self-expression, many users voiced concerns about the impending ban. Despite widespread protests and awareness campaigns, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the law in January 2025, ruling that it did not violate the First Amendment. As a result, TikTok was officially banned on January 19, 2025.
In response, millions of former TikTok users flocked to RedNote, the Chinese version of the app known as Xiaohongshu.
The platform’s U.S. user base surged from fewer than 700,000 to 3.4 million in a single day. Just a week prior, it had only 300,000 users.
“This is for my fellow TikTok refugees and Americans—behave on this app! You better behave because everyone in China is being so kind to us as we colonize their cutesy-tootsy app just because our government sucks,” an American user named “Savannah” posted on Wednesday. By Thursday, the post had gained 128,000 impressions, according to CBS News.
While many Chinese users welcomed American newcomers, answering questions about culture, food, and travel, some U.S. users tested the platform’s censorship rules.
However, TikTok’s absence was short-lived. On January 20, 2025, newly re-elected President Donald Trump issued an executive order delaying the enforcement of the ban by 75 days. Less than a month later, on February 13, Apple and Google restored TikTok to the App Store and Google Play.
Following TikTok’s reinstatement, RedNote’s surge quickly subsided. Data from Sensor Tower showed a 91% drop in RedNote downloads in the five days after TikTok returned to Apple’s App Store and Google Play. Meanwhile, TikTok’s downloads doubled compared to its usual rate.
The rapid shifts highlight the volatile nature of social media regulation and the profound impact of platform availability on digital communities.
