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TikTok faces uncertain future
TikTok is facing an uncertain future in the United States as lawmakers took a step forward in banning the social media app. Tonight, there are growing concerns for content creators here in the Bay Area who say any restrictions would hurt their bottom line.
SAN FRANCISCO - Andrew De Los Santos is a professional social media content creator in San Francisco.
"I had one TikTok video that went viral," De Los Santos told KTVU, who is against banning TikTok.
His clients hire him to do their marketing on social media, including TikTok.
He said the city of Oakland recently hired him to promote Restaurant Week.
For a video that’s from one minute to a minute and 30 seconds, he charges anywhere from $500 to $2,000.
One quarter of his business comes from TikTok where he has about 12,000 followers.
"I think people love the authenticity of TikTok," De Los Santos said.
Mikayla Tencer of San Francisco is known as Mikayla Wine Style on TikTok, where Napa Valley winery recommendations and lifestyle posts make up her content.
Tencer is hired by several companies to manage their social media, in addition to her own, which she has done professionally for three years now.
Tencer points out that TikTok doubles as a search engine for younger users like Gen Z.
"Where you can go into a search bar and type in restaurants in Inner Richmond or restaurants in SOMA, and you’re going to find reviews of those places of like people who’ve recently been there."
Tencer believes those restaurants would lose business if TikTok ends up being banned, and she would too.
The platform accounts for 30 percent of her business and would cost her up to $12,000 a year if banned.
"The importance here is protecting data," Tencer said. "I think that’s really important. I don’t think banning this one app is going to address that issue in and of itself."
Tencer believes lawmakers should find a way to focus on data privacy without infringing upon freedom of speech.
If a content creator loses TikTok, their overall reach on social media would be lower, and that’s what they base their fees on.
How potential TikTok ban could impact content creators
The House of Representatives passed a bill on Wednesday targeting the social media platform TikTok.