Arizona businesses prep for looming TikTok ban, users flock to alternative platforms
GLENDALE, AZ (AZFamily) — Samuel Sears runs AZ Taco King in Glendale with his wife and sons. He said the business took off during the pandemic and never slowed down, thanks to TikTok.
The restaurant’s TikTok page has over 100,000 followers and millions of likes. However, Sears is now bracing for his page to shut down with the TikTok ban looming.
“For us to get to the point now where it really sounds like it is getting taken away really sucks,” said Sears.
The fate of TikTok in the United States now hangs in the balance.
The Supreme Court is set to decide the constitutionality of a bipartisan law banning the app unless it divests from its China-based owner, ByteDance. That law is set to go into effect on Jan. 19.
“Giving China access to the personal data of millions of Americans is a threat to national security,” said Valley attorney Robert McWhirter.
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments last week. McWhirter said the justices seem poised to uphold the ban.
RELATED: How to prepare for a potential TikTok ban
TikTok users are already flocking to other social media platforms like RedNote, a Chinese app that is now topping the download charts. As for Sears, he said it is going to be hard to replicate TikTok’s massive reach, which has brought him business from all over the world.
“We are supposed to be the most free nation in the world, but yet you can come take something that so many people are telling people that we actually want and need. Sometimes feels like it is falling on deaf ears,” said Sears.
See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.
Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.
Copyright 2025 KTVK/KPHO. All rights reserved.
