In December, in a piece about Luigi Mangione and the “blackpilling” of America-a descent into failure-Vox writer Rebecca Jennings describes a general malaise that has gripped the masses: “All segments of the American people increasingly see themselves as being in a nihilistic state…They are upset about the economy and feel that negative about climate change, the dating market, and their own loneliness. They have lost faith in nearly every major US institution, from the public school system to police departments, the military, unions, organized religion and, of course, the media.”

That feeling may also describe much of the nature of social media platforms in 2025. X, once considered the town square of the internet, does not take kindly to trolls, hate speech, and propaganda. Meta, which seems to be following in the footsteps of X and Elon Musk, is making a comeback fact check and protections against hate speech on Facebook and Instagram at a fast pace. Social platforms are willing to become even more toxic to their own users as a little more cruel. rich and powerful people fight among themselves insecurities around masculinity and freedom of speech.

TikTok, in comparison, is not just a social platform. It’s personalized, helpful even. I’ve been an avid TikToker for years; it’s a platform that teaches me recipes, curly hair care, how to find financial resources, art tutorials, exercise routines, plant care, and more. It has had a more positive material influence on my life than any other platform, a sentiment shared by many American users. Is that personal impact more important than listening to dry government explanations about foreign influence? Just ask TikTokers now studying Mandarin as they migrate to RedNote.

Some TikTok users are spending what appear to be the app’s final days saying goodbye. “To my Chinese spy watching me through my phone,” reading one“I miss you.” The app’s closing hours are full of creators asking their audience to follow them everywhere, while also using every last second to dunk in their own country and its efforts to ban an app while larger problems persist. “National fucking security risk?” user Bryan Andrews said in a video with 27 million views. “Yes, that’s fucking right.”

Gone are the days when TikTok was considered just an app where people posted lip syncs and dance moves. Now it’s a powerhouse, a well-tuned machine that churns out memes, jokes, fashion trends, news, music, slang, and more faster than any modern social platform.

TikTok’s success exists on a macro and micro level, dictating cultural trends and offering individuals the ability to curate a specific type of lifestyle through a feed that is constantly evolving based on your interests. It gives artists a better platform to have their work seen by people all over the world. it helped the victims in war-torn countries get their message abroad. It has created a new generation of small business owners, an untold number of people who have been able to financially bootstrap themselves to better lives by building an audience.

The threat that the US government claims that TikTok is of little interest to the average American. In fact, the younger generation has EVER exist in an online world where their privacy exposedSOMETIMES since birth. As a TikTok user crutches_and_spice put it: “I don’t care that China has my data! Are you kidding? Everyone has my data.”