Potential TikTok ban has Twin Cities business owners concerned

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MINNEAPOLIS — Many view TikTok as the arbiter of all that is fresh and hip. With more than 1.7 billion subscribers worldwide, its famous algorithms harness your searches and drive you towards more of what you prefer. Marketers say this is sheer gold while critics say it’s addictive.

Now the China-based company faces a potential ban in the U.S. due to concerns about national security.

A bill to ban the social media giant has already passed with bipartisan support in the U.S. House of Representatives.

What does this mean for you? If passed, Americans would lose access to TikTok within six months. The bill also seeks TikTok’s China-based parent company ByteDance to sell its stake.

In Talking Points, Esme Murphy looks at the debate from a local level and its impact if banned.

The Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce represents more than 1,500 small businesses and says a ban would harm them.

“We talk to small businesses all across the region. And they’ve increasingly leverage social media over the course of the last decade, TikTok being one of the more relevant and prevalent platforms. And it’s a really important piece of their marketing strategy,” said Jonathan Weinhagen, the president and CEO at Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce.

To understand the impact on small businesses, Murphy spoke with a Twin Cities woman whose business, the Formidable Geneologist, helps people take DNA test results to the next level.

“The tricky part about the DNA test is you have to actually analyze the results, and then triangulate those relationships. So those services just give you the results, but not how to use it. So I do that,” said Jen Shaffer.

According to Shaffer, the business was going nowhere with her attempts to market it on social media.

“I even tried paid ads on Facebook and Instagram. And again, no traction. But once I started on TikTok, it gained so much traction,” said Shaffer.

The success has allowed her to leave the corporate world forever, triple her income and spend more time with her young daughter.

While local business owners have seen success on TikTok, lawmakers want to regulate the platform amid national security concerns.

Those concerns include fears that the Chinese government could use TikTok to spy on Americans or weaponize it.

A leading expert in the field of cyber security echoes these concerns.

“If you read your terms and conditions, when you install the app, you are giving the TikTok app access to the data on your phone. So this could include your contact information, messages, browsing histories. And if you’re not careful, even the microphone and camera,” said Mark Lanterman, chief technology officer at Computer Forensic Services.