TikTokers are turning to memes to cope with a possible ban
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- TikTok users are reacting to a potential US ban by creating memes.
- The government has said the Chinese-owned app presents national security concerns.
- Users are turning to humor to cope with uncertainty about the platform's future.
It's a week of mourning for TikTok users, and they're using humor to make peace with the looming ban.
A slew of videos and photos have emerged as TikTokers make memes to say goodbye to the short-form video platform. A TikTok ban isn't certain, but users will find out the app's fate on Sunday — the deadline for its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to find a buyer in the US.
In true internet fashion, TikTokers are posting what could be their final jokes on the app. Some of them are hosting fake funerals for TikTok; others are bidding goodbye to their "Chinese spy," a reference to the US's concerns that the app represents a threat to national security.
Meanwhile, others are blaming Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg for trying to take away TikTok. Zuckerberg could win big if "TikTok refugees," as they call themselves, flocked to Meta's Instagram to watch short-form reels.
Some, like TikToker Santina Rizzi, aren't so sure Zuckerberg is "going to get" the top spot for short videos if a ban goes through. She said users would go to YouTube instead.
"I'll be touching grass before I return to anything Meta," a top comment said.
@sanrizzle Plz that hair transplant made him even more diabolical
♬ original sound - Santina
Still, users are finding ways to laugh instead of panicking about the potential shutdown.
Some said they're willing to move to another country to have access to TikTok, and others joked they're willing to learn Chinese to use an emerging platform called Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote. The China-based app shot to the top of the Apple App Store this week as people sought an alternative to Instagram reels or YouTube shorts.
While some have found substitute apps to fill the void, others have pondered turning a new leaf in their social media usage and trying to regain some of their time and energy.
"I think I'm just going to finally read a book," one commenter said in response to a video from Sierra Boudreaux (@averagesisi).
"I'll probably actually start getting my 10k steps in," another added.
Over the years, TikTok has been the birthplace of iconic memes, phrases that have entered the cultural lexicon, or just a place for people to consume short-form content tailored to their interests.
Without TikTok, the world might have never learned slang terms like "unalive," "rizz," or "demure," which initially became popular on the platform.
But many users have also made peace with the potential dissolution of TikTok, and they're trying to enjoy the time they have left with the app — however long that may be.
@jessica02838 How can we band together and make it stay ???????????? my shayla
♬ so long london bridge - molly! ☆
This isn't the first time a beloved social media app has faced a big change. Twitter users mourned the platform as they knew it before it became X under Elon Musk's ownership. Like TikTok, users laughed and despaired over the fate of their go-to platform.
TikTok's future is yet to be determined, but users are going hard on the jokes in case it's their last chance to get one in.
And if all else fails, there's always the library.