Alex Pearlman closed the door on dreams of a stand-up comedy career nearly a decade ago, pivoting from the stage to an office cubicle where he worked a customer service job.
Then he started posting random jokes and commentary about pop culture and politics on TikTok. More than 2.5 million followers later, he quit his nine-to-five life and recently booked his first national tour.
Pearlman is one of several TikTok creators in the U.S. outraged by a bipartisan bill passed by the House of Representatives on Wednesday that would lead to a nationwide ban on the popular video app if its China-based owner, ByteDance , does not sell his interest. . The bill still needs to pass the Senate, where its prospects are unclear.
Content creators say a ban would hurt countless people and businesses who rely on TikTok for a significant portion of their income, while also arguing that TikTok has become an unparalleled platform for dialogue and community.
Pearlman, who lives outside Philadelphia, says TikTok has transformed his life, allowing him to live a dream, care for his family and spend the first three months of his newborn son’s life at home. His customer service job only offered paternity leave worth three weeks off, with two weeks paid.
“I don’t take this app for granted because it’s so shocking,” Pearlman, 39, said. “In reality, TikTok has been the driving force behind American social media for the past four years. Something will end up in that place if TikTok disappears tomorrow. Whether that will be better or worse, Congress doesn’t know.”
Launched in 2016, TikTok has become extremely popular and is growing faster than Instagram, YouTube or Facebook. The push to remove the app from Chinese authorities follows concerns from lawmakers, law enforcement and intelligence officials about the insecurity of user data, the possible suppression of content unfavorable to the Chinese government and the possibility that the platform could promote pro-Beijing propaganda can stimulate. which TikTok denies.
To date, the US government has not provided any evidence that TikTok has shared US user data with Chinese authorities.
The move comes as the pandemic saw a boom in digital marketing as people were stuck at home and consuming – and creating – content at a level never seen before.
Jensen Savannah, a 29-year-old from Charlotte, started making TikToks of her travels through the Carolinas during the pandemic. She now works full-time as an influencer and has tripled her income since leaving her job as a sales executive in the telecommunications sector.
“Social media Influencer should almost be seen as the new print and the new form of radio and TV advertising,” she said. “It’s going to take your dollar much further than traditional marketing.”
Some creators describe it as a kind of digital equalizer, offering people of color and other marginalized groups a platform to gain opportunity and exposure.
“I’ve always had Twitter, I’ve had Facebook, I’ve had Instagram. But TikTok was the first one where if you want to find someone who looks like you and represents you in any way, you can find them,” said Joshua Dairen, a Black, 30-year-old content creator in Auburn. Alabama. Dairen makes videos about his state’s ghost stories, urban legends and history.
Growing up, he loved investigating all things paranormal, but he didn’t see much black representation in the field. Exposure to TikTok has led to jobs writing freelance pieces and contributing to documentaries about paranormal events and unsolved mysteries. The app also gave Dairen the flexibility and confidence to open his own coffee shop, where he is visited at least once a day by fans of his work.
He thinks banning TikTok “sets a dangerous precedent for how much power our highest levels of government can wield.”
Others say the app is both a financial and social safety net.
Chris Bautista, owner of a Los Angeles food truck that services television and film sets, started using TikTok during the pandemic to connect with members of the LGBTQ+ community and show support for those who may be struggling.
Bautista, 37, grew up in a conservative Christian community outside LA and didn’t come out until his late 20s. As a youngster, he struggled with his mental health and contemplated suicide. He wanted to create a platform that he could have used as a teenager, one that showed that someone like him could go to that dark place and come out the other side as a “well-adjusted, confident person.”
“I find the corners of TikTok I’m in so incredibly important and profound,” said Bautista, who said it would be “heartbreaking” if the app were banned.
Bautista didn’t start posting with the intention of monetizing the experience, but the money from projects linked to the app came at the right time: if not for the additional income he earned through TikTok during the pandemic and the subsequent strikes in Hollywood. year his company would have closed.
Almost since its inception, concerns have been raised about the addictive nature of the app, especially among a young audience whose minds are still developing. Marcus Bridgewater, a former teacher and private school administrator who owns his own business and posts TikTok gardening videos, wants Congress to focus on these issues, and not on whether the app is Chinese-owned.
“Social media is a powerful tool,” said Bridgewater, who lives in Spring, Texas. “And powerful tools are just that: they are able to help us transcend ourselves, but in their transcendence they are also able to separate us completely from each other. of those we love.”
Pearlman said he has long feared politicians would come after TikTok. He compared the experience of hearing about the vote in the House of Representatives to finally getting the call that a sick loved one has died.
“The part that concerns me is that I feel like TikTok and social media in general is an outlet for a lot of Americans — it’s become kind of a standard complaint box,” he said. as if they are trying to ban the complaint box instead of handling the complaint.”
