What do Americans REALLY think of looming TikTok ban? We asked New Yorkers on the street… with mixed results

Americans think banning TikTok would do wonders for their mental health and productivity, but they’re also worried about losing access to it as a news source.

That was the consensus among New Yorkers interviewed by DailyMail.com today as Congress passed a bill that will force the app’s Chinese parent company to divest or face a ban on US app stores.

“I was upset for about three days,” said a former high school teacher. “I spend too much time on it, but it’s very entertaining and I would get angry at the end,” said a woman in her 20s.

But others said they valued the way the app exposes them to news and lifestyle content, and fear they are on the verge of losing what has become an important new source for millions of young Americans.

“Anything I have a question about, I look it up on TikTok,” one young woman said. “It’s a great way to spread information so quickly,” said another, “I think it shouldn’t be banned.”

Some even said their mental health would improve if TikTok disappeared.

Most people interviewed by DailyMail.com expressed a sense of loss or disappointment over the impending ban. Those who didn’t know either didn’t know or didn’t care.

Only one respondent seemed aware of the national security concern, but he confidently repeated, “Trump will get it back.”

“It would make me sad,” said one person interviewed, who said he used it more than any other app. “I love TikTok,” she told DailyMail.com.

The proposed ban is based on fears that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, could misuse people’s personal data and possibly even hand it over to the Chinese government, something it could theoretically be forced to do, under the law. China.

TikTok has consistently denied the allegations, but US lawmakers took another step toward enacting the ban today, as the House of Representatives voted 352-65 to pass the bill.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who as president used his executive authority to order ByteDance to sell TikTok, has now voiced his opposition, shortly after meeting with Republican mega-donor Jeff Yass, whose company has a $20 billion stake in ByteDance.

Meanwhile, TikTok has been on a lobbying frenzy to shore up support among senators, as the next step before the bill is passed will be a vote in the US Senate.

Another woman interviewed by DailyMail.com today said she wouldn’t mind a ban too much because the app is “very addictive”, and a ban would “give us the opportunity to look up and be more present”.

He also noted that there are other places to find content.

“I understand why people would be upset,” he said, “but I personally don’t think I care too much.”

An older German expressed that he did not know anything about social media or what Congress was when he was interviewed.

But he also expressed that members of his generation have done many things they were told not to do, and he encouraged young Americans to do the same.

“Maybe I spend too much time on it,” said another respondent, “but in the end I would get angry.”

Similarly, another respondent said, “I think he would be upset for about three days, but then he would get over it.”

The man, a former high school teacher, said the app was “detrimental to children’s education” due to its effects on children’s attention spans.

Fears that the Chinese government will gain unauthorized access to Americans’ data have earned bipartisan support for the proposed ban: 73 percent of House Democrats and 90 percent of House Republicans voted in favor.

After House approval, the next step is for the Senate to vote on the bill.

If approved, it will go to Joe Biden for his signature. President Biden already promised that he would sign the bill, even though his campaign is posting on the app.

Should TikTok be banned in the US, several respondents told DailyMail.com they would spend their phone time on X, although each called it by its old name, Twitter.

Some said they would spend less time on their phones.

“Maybe I’ll have more time to relax and go for a walk,” said one respondent.