TikTok users on emotional roller coaster after app goes dark, then returns online

TikTok users and content creators in the Bay Area are also weighing in on the latest developments with the app.

Whether you’re a TikTok user or not, the status of the app is what people are talking about, including users in the Bay Area.

"I didn’t think it was going to happen. I thought that something would come in at the last minute. Everyone uses it so much," said Sontag Woodson, of Oakland.

When millions of TikTok users across the country tried to use the app on Saturday night, this is the message they saw. It read, "A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now." The ban, scheduled to start on Sunday, caught many users off guard.

"So many of my friends were texting me or screaming about it, saying ‘oh my God, it’s gone!" said Nadia Deetz, of Richmond.

Even a local police dept. got in on the TikTok hysteria. The Santa Clara Police Dept. posted this tongue-in-cheek message on Facebook, saying in part: "We’re checking in to make sure everyone’s okay during this difficult TikTok(less) night. Stay calm. Take a deep breath. And remember, we’re here if you need us, but please don’t call 911 to report TikTok being down."

"I think that it’s strange and it definitely kind of grabs your attention. You think, oh my God, this is what it would be like without it. So maybe they were trying to get everyone to realize how important it was," said Deetz. 

TikTok, owned by Chinese parent company Byte Dance, was offline for less than 24 hours and available again on Sunday. 

Content creator Jade Le has operated Lemonade51o on TikTok for two years, promoting all-things Oakland and East Bay and selling merchandise. Because of TikTok and Instagram, she now runs her business full-time. 

"There’s a part of me that’s relieved in a sense that nothing big is going to change. I get to make content. I still get to share it in the same way. It doesn’t feel good as a citizen, as somebody who’s watching this all play out politically, it doesn’t feel good in that sense," said Le.   

Despite the Supreme Court upholding the law to ban TikTok for national security reasons, incoming President Donald Trump, says he’ll give the company more time to figure out who they can sell it to after his inauguration on Monday.

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