TikTok influencers mourn potential ban, flock to Instagram

Images of Trump sit on display on a hashtag search for #donaldtrump in the TikTok app. Panicked that their digital clubhouse could be taken away or sold to Microsoft Corp, many popular TikTokers are racing to move their creative endeavours to Instagram, the rival mobile app owned by Facebook. — Bloomberg

Days after the US government challenged Facebook Inc’s growing power over social media in a Congressional hearing, the Trump administration handed the company a gift.

Late last week, the US president said he planned to shut down Facebook’s most formidable challenger: Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok. That threat sparked a panic among users that their digital clubhouse would soon be taken away or sold to Microsoft Corp – and sent many popular TikTokers racing to move their creative endeavours to Instagram, the rival mobile app owned by Facebook.