TikTok is set to be effectively banned from U.S. app stores on Sunday after a Friday U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowed a law trying to force the sale of the app to be enforced, leaving influencers in Ohio who use the app to find a way forward.
On an app known for dance trends and the ever-so-common cute cat videos found on the internet, Ohio's crop of influencers is very diverse in terms of content creation. Their videos range from educational videos on plants, Ohio-centric sports rants, reviews of small-town Ohio eateries and even lore and local legends of creepy cryptids.
Alexis Nikole Nelson, of Columbus, known as the "Black Forager," helps millions of followers identify edible and inedible plants found in the forest. As the app is set to be banned, she has around 4.5 million followers.
Joey Kinsley, known as "Sir Yacht," makes many videos about Ohio sports teams and often makes visits to towns around the state. Kinsley has over half a million followers.
Gambier, Ohio Mayor Leeman Kessler styles himself as "Mayor Lovecraft" and posts cryptic videos that discuss Ohio creatures, creepy tales and lore.
Kessler posted a video Wednesday telling his 150,000 followers "Whatever happens, thank you for an amazing time. Stay weird ya'll."
Nelson and Kinsley have not posted a goodbye message as of Friday afternoon. Neither responded to a request for comment.
Another Buckeye State influencer is Ohio State Senator Kent Smith, a Euclid Democrat. Smith gained a following of over 100,000 people by explaining laws going through the Ohio General Assembly in a weekly segment.
Smith said he hopes the ban doesn't have to take effect and that he views the U.S. law trying to force the sale of the app as a coercion tactic.
"We hope it doesn't come to that. But again, I think based on how quickly Washington, D.C. moved in a bipartisan manner. There's probably something serious that they've deemed as a national security threat," Smith said.
Smith said he wouldn't characterize himself as "supportive" of the ban, but he does understand where federal lawmakers were coming from. Former Congressmember Jeff Jackson of North Carolina, now the state's attorney general, gained a large following on the app before he himself voted to ban it.
"If you can scare some members of Congress, you know, 75% of the members of Congress of anything so that they'll enact legislation, I think that's something that...is worth taking our attention," Smith said.
Smith said there is potential for the Chinese government to unleash a Pandora's box of some sort using TikTok.
"This is not a problem with the TikTok audience or with TikTok users," Smith said.
Smith said he is telling his followers to find him on other apps like Instagram or YouTube. He expects other influencers will find platforms to share their content if TikTok gets banned.
