The White House has officially joined TikTok, a social network that US President Donald Trump has repeatedly tried to ban. He last threatened to block TikTok in July if China did not agree to sell the service. However, the mood in the White House has changed again.
The official account's first post features footage of Trump performing to a Kendrick Lamar track. The video is stylized as a popular TikTok trend, referencing the film Creed starring Michael B. Jordan.
According to Engadget, the Trump administration believes that TikTok helped him win the 2024 election by allowing him to directly reach young voters. His campaign account then gathered more than 15 million followers.
"President Trump's message dominated TikTok during his presidential campaign, and we're excited to build upon those successes and communicate in a way no other administration has before," said White House press secretary Caroline Levitt.
During his first term, Trump signed an executive order blocking deals with TikTok’s owner, Chinese company ByteDance, arguing that the app could give the Chinese Communist Party access to Americans’ personal data, track government employees, and conduct corporate espionage.
However, upon returning to the White House earlier this year, Trump halted the ban, delaying it several times to give ByteDance time to sell its US business. The president even said that a “very wealthy” group was ready to buy TikTok, but the names of the potential investors have not yet been disclosed.
By launching its own account, the White House is signaling that TikTok will become a key communication channel for the administration, even despite unresolved questions about its ownership and security.
TikTok is a popular social network for creating and watching short videos, developed by the Chinese company ByteDance. The app has become a global phenomenon, especially among young people, thanks to recommendation algorithms that quickly match videos to users' interests.
TikTok has been the subject of national security controversy in the United States, with government and intelligence agencies expressing concerns that American user data could be accessed by the Chinese government because ByteDance is based in China.