US Government on Ban TikTok: Should you worry about your blog?

Earlier this year, many experts are starting to warn users from all over the globe about the security threats and issues the TikTok app has. Allegedly, the app presents privacy securities that give hackers the opportunity to manipulate and delete accounts. More importantly, there are issues that TikTok is not secure enough to prevent hackers from gaining user information and sharing it with the public. There are also reports that the Chinese government uses TikTok to gain information about its US account holders. Alternatively, there are also allegations that the company that owns the TikTok app directly reports to the Chinese government. There are also issues on content filters that finetune the posts against controversial, taboo, and debatable content.

Because of this, the US government has announced the possibility of the ban of TikTok in the country. Interestingly, TikTok has announced the increase of jobs in the US by 10,000. There are allegations that this is a safety net to prevent the federal government from closing down the company. In case the closure of TikTok is pushed through, millions across the US will be surely affected.

US government plans to ban TikTok in the US. Image Source: Pixabay

Other than the US, other countries are also considering the complete ban of TikTok in their country. This includes India (which already banned the use of TikTok) and Australia. In fact, the US has already banned the download and installation of the TikTok app to any federal employee or government worker. Everyone working for the military, navy, airforce, coast guard, and the like are banned from downloading and installing the TikTok app on any of their devices for safety reasons.

The emergence of Video Blogs or Vlogs

Allegedly, the first-ever video blog was created in the year 2000. A vlog is a form of creating content or blogging through the use of video as its main medium. Usually, a video blog allows the audience a peek into the life of the blogger. There are a variety of content niches that are popular for video blogging. There are dance videos, tutorials, DIYs, make-up, fashion, and more. At this day and age, it would seem like there is a video blog for almost anything anyone could think of.

There is a continuous revolution of content creation in recent years. The popularity of print, or journal-type blogging, is starting to reduce as internet users prefer a more direct-to-the point content media. Many internet users would prefer videos over text for many activities on the internet like reading the news or learning a new lesson. There are even estimates that in the next few years, more than 80% of internet content will be made up of videos rather than text. This is why TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram are as popular as they are now. This is also why Youtube is still a sensational platform.

How Important is Tiktok for Bloggers

There are multiple benefits to using TikTok for bloggers. Here are some of them:

TikTok is a fairly active community. There are more than 70 Million users just in the US alone. Bloggers do consider using TikTok as an alternative means of publishing content, just on the basis of this number. This is also why video bloggers, or sometimes known as influencers, gain more organic internet traffic than other blogging media.
Allows users to see who viewed their content. This allows the account user (or blogger) to improve their content based on the profiles and demographics of their viewers. This also allows bloggers to further engage their audience.
The popularity of a blogger does not rely on just the number of followers. Viral content, or content popularity, can further boost up organic traffic. TikTok algorithms allow viral posts to be featured on the ‘discover’ page of the app.
It is a social media app that allows bloggers to create accounts for free. This is in contrast to the expense of creating a page and buying domains on the internet. Gaining popularity on social media platforms allows bloggers to create a fanbase or following. Naturally, this fanbase may contribute to increasing traffic onto the blogger’s website or webpage.
Most avid users of technology are Gen Z and the Millenials. These are also the target readers of a great majority of blogs on the internet. Many of these users see TikTok as a fun and enjoyable app to use for anything – cooking, dancing, singing, laughing, and more.

Effect of TikTok Ban to Bloggers

The app has provided new influencers and bloggers to create a fanbase and following. The app helps these new bloggers to establish their brand. The said app does not only have content about viral nonsense. In fact, TikTok is home to performers, storytellers, artists, and educators. The potential ban of the app will affect the livelihood of all these individuals. The ban will surely affect bloggers whose presence exists exclusively on TikTok. Furthermore, the potential ban of the TikTok app in the US will surely affect not only influencers but also brands that rely on influencers to promote their products.