Tech Desk 
Jan 26, 2025
On the sidelines of a dramatic turn of events generating buzz around the TikTok acquisition in 30 days, TikTok users in the US claimed that the app's content seems to have been censored since its restoration in the country after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order.
Once a haven for free speech free from censorship, the app was banned in the US after a law came into effect on January 19, mandating ByteDance, TikTok's parent based in China, to be divested of the app or face a ban.
Citing TikTok users in the US, Reuters reported that users began taking notice of changes in the content available on the short-video platform.
Hinting at a potential acquisition within 30 days, the US president has also claimed that negotiations were underway with third-party investors to sell a 50% stake in the platform, with potential bidders including people with friendly ties with the new Republican president.
One of the most prominent indications of content moderation is fewer livestreams, while some activities are increasingly getting blocked or removed for violating community guidelines. This prevention of content, TikTok users in the US outlined, also taking over behaviour which permissibly normal on the platform.
"Our policies and algorithms did not change over the weekend," TikTok said in a statement to Reuters. "We are working hard to restore our US operations back to normal and expect some temporary instability as we restore our services, which could impact TikTok features or users' access to the app."
Other signs of censorship revolve around limited search results, warnings about misinformation, and prompts asking users to verify the sources of the content they disseminate.
Some users also claimed that phrases like "Free Palestine" and "Free Luigi," were more likely to trigger a strike on a piece of content, which were previously allowed.
