- President Trump's extension for TikTok to continue to operate will expire on Saturday, April 5th.
- Trump has stated he could extend the deadline again if the app's Chinese parent company doesn't divest its ownership by then
- Watch the video to learn why neighbors and local businesses want TikTok to stay.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
In less than a week, President Trump's extension on the TikTok ban will expire if the app isn't sold to an American company.
I'm Kenya Cardonne, your Southeast Tallahassee neighborhood reporter. Neighbors who lean on the app for personal and professional use say they're hoping for another extension if a deal isn't finalized by the April 5th deadline.
Carolina Garcia, Neighbor - "It is a really important way for communities to exist and those communities can't be recreated on other social media platforms."
Neighbors say they want TikTok to stay.
Celeste McKnight, Realtor with Superior Realty Group - "I feel like with TikTok, you can be more of your authentic self."
The clock is ticking on the extension President Trump ordered to reverse a ban that cut Americans off from TikTok back in January.
McKnight - "My first reaction initially was like, what do we do now? Because it was such like an outlet for us, even if it was like outside of business, but it was an outlet for a lot of creatives, and it was a money maker, and for myself, that's where most of my clients come from."
Local businesses like Superior Realty Group in Tallahassee join the nation in waiting to see whether the app's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, will divest its ownership by April 5th or if the President will issue another extension.
In a press conference Wednesday, President Donald Trump said, "We’re going to have a form of a deal, but if it’s not finished, it’s not a big deal. We’ll just extend it.”
The push for ByteDance to sell follows a debate over national security.
Realtor Celeste McKnight has more than 7,000 followers and 70,000 likes on TikTok.
McKnight - "Social media has been my main source of lead generation. So for TikTok, I've closed deals and it's allowed me to put information out there, whether it be a video or a carousel like with images with verbiage on it."
Leon County Neighbors have different opinions on the action taken against the app.
Garcia - "I mean I do hope that TikTok doesn't sell to an American company, just because I think that so many organizations and like world powers are forced to bend towards the will of America, no matter what."
But for the most part, they tell me there's more to lose than to gain should TikTok go away.
McKnight - "I feel like there's so much other situations happening where they should focus on that, because a lot of people.. use it as a virtual diary and doing business and making money for their families. So I think the extension, I hope it happens again, they figure it out and it never goes away."
During a press conference, the President said he would consider giving China a reduction in tariffs to get the country to "play a role" in the sale of TikTok. In Southeast Tallahassee, Kenya Cardonne ABC 27.
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