A TikTok ban? Oh, heck no. Stark County area content creators speak out against proposal

Navarre resident Ryan Shaner uses TikTok for a side gig where he creates cocktails and festively samples alcoholic beverages for his 2 million followers.

Carter Collins of Jackson Township found success as a self-taught artist, attracting 1.3 million followers on TikTok by rendering cartoon-style images of the Grinch, Barbie and other characters.

Boasting 764,000 TikTok followers, Canton's Dereck Malone travels the state and country reviewing restaurants for a living.

And TikTok has boosted visibility for David Sherrill, an internationally-known artist based in downtown Canton who inserts Star Wars and pop culture characters onto thrift store paintings.

The four TikTok content creators make money from the popular online video hosting and sharing service. And they have a blast while entertaining and informing their followers.

All that would change if Congress bans TikTok, which has more than 1 billion users, including 170 million Americans.

The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a ban with bipartisan support, 352-65, formally known as the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, but it can't take effect without Senate approval.

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The House's bill would require TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell the social media app or essentially be banned. App stores and web hosting companies would be barred from offering the app for new downloads or updating it on users' phones, according to USA Today.

U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes, D-Akron, said in a prepared statement that the bill addresses national security and privacy concerns with the Chinese company while requiring TikTok to divest from the app so it remains accessible to users.

Sykes represents the 13th Congressional District, which includes northwestern Stark County.

Momentum is building for Congress to take action against TikTok.

On Thursday, the House included a version of its plan to force TikTok's Chinese parent company to sell the social media platform or face an effective ban in the U.S. in a pivotal foreign aid bill sailing toward passage in both the House and Senate, USA Today reported. President Joe Biden has already said he would sign it into law immediately.

The move effectively forces the Senate – which has been sitting on the House's original bill for a month – to consider legislation, the newspaper said.

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A call for banning TikTok has drawn fierce backlash from its users and those who say the massive online community helps small businesses and charitable causes while boosting the national economy.

TikTok critics, however, argue the app is being used for propaganda and that American data could be accessed by the Chinese government, USA Today said.

TikTok has countered that the Chinese government cannot access U.S. user data and has derided the legislation as an outright ban.

"It is unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of important foreign and humanitarian assistance (for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan) to once again jam through a ban bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans, devastate 7 million businesses, and shutter a platform that contributes $24 billion to the U.S. economy, annually," the company posted on X Wednesday evening.

A Pew Research poll from December indicated 38% of the public supported a TikTok ban and 27% opposed one, down from 50% support in March last year.

During recent interviews with The Canton Repository, local TikTok content creators and influencers shared their thoughts on the potential outlawing of the social media site.

TikTok foodie says ban would hurt the small businesses he helps

Malone said he uses his charismatic style to help mom-and-pop restaurants stay open or flourish, which isn't easy in an increasingly competitive and challenging industry.

Malone, 41, benefits as well, charging a fee for his services and access to his vast audience. He's also on Facebook and Instagram, but TikTok is where he's so popular that he's frequently recognized out in public.

"TikTok is the No. 1 algorithm," he said of the way content is filtered, ranked, selected and recommended to users. "It will take anyone from a zero to a hero (if you actively post entertaining and interesting videos on the platform). It's not if you'll hit a million views ... it's when."

Malone's gregarious disposition cools a bit when he talks about a TikTok ban.

"It's a full-on bully tactic," he said. "I'm telling you right now."

A ban would be a form of censorship while inhibiting freedom of speech, Malone said.

"This could induce chaos," he said. "People will lose their mind."

During a Congressional hearing, politicians were embarrassingly out of touch with TikTok and modern technology in general, he said.

"The thing that blows my mind is ... if you have Hulu, Netflix, Google, Facebook and Instagram, it's all a security threat," Malone said. "All those platforms do the same thing that they're trying to say is a problem."

Potential cyber attacks are a reality of the digital age in general, he said.

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Malone said he's an example of the good that can be done on TikTok by giving restaurants positive exposure.

Stuffed Pastry in North Canton saw sales spike after Malone raved about their sweet treats in a succession of TikTok videos.

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Elisabeth Park, a former Las Vegas resort pastry chef, said her husband purchased her Malone's video services as a Christmas gift.

She said the fee wasn't astronomical, especially when compared to traditional advertising that would make less of an impact.

"What I can say is that our business for a while there definitely tripled for a few days and doubled probably for a couple weeks," she added. "And even now, we're up from where we were."

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Shaner, 36, explodes with personality and humor when he posts his drinking videos on TikTok under the handle One Big Pike.

Shaner generates income from TikTok's creator fund when amassing a high volume of views. But it's not nearly enough to leave his stable job in the psychiatric field, which comes with health insurance and other benefits.

But he's gotten big enough online that Monster Energy drinks paid for Shaner's flight and lodging at a Las Vegas Power Slap event to promote its line of alcoholic beverages. And companies also send him cocktail smokers, liquor-infused cakes and other products to review on camera, although he said he purchases about 90 percent of the beverages he samples.

"I've helped out some small companies," he said. "They've reached out to me, like Windy City Smokers, one guy in his garage in Chicago who makes (cocktail smokers)."

Following Shaner's review, the entrepreneur's orders were backed up for six months.

More than anything, he said, TikTok is about having a good time, and a ban would rob TikTok users of that experience.

"You turn on the news and bridges are collapsing and the world's coming apart," Shaner said. "Sometimes you just need a minute, and if I can post a video, and for that two minutes you're not thinking about carnage, the oil change (for your car) or how you're going to pay a bill or whatever, if you're just thinking that my video is funny, it makes my day."

Shaner says federal politicians are laughably disconnected from "normal Americans" and their use of social media.

"It's wild to think that these guys would have any sort of grip of how TikTok works and how the algorithm works and how technology works," he said. "And that's no fault of their own due to their age and everything else."

Shaner believes the security risk cited by Congress has been overblown, especially when considering that some members and President Joe Biden have used TikTok themselves.

Benefits of TikTok are immense, he said, including its positive social impact.

"There's a lot of people ... that don't go out and don't have a lot of friends, and they view TikTok as a comfort to them," said Shaner, who is frequently recognized in public due to the popularity of his videos, including at Cleveland sporting events, the Food and Wine Festival at Disney World, Washington D.C. and in Las Vegas.

TikTok artist would support ban 'if there is an actual threat.'

Collins, 23, used TikTok to showcase his artwork and build a massive following.

People love his colorful and spirited drawings and assorted stylings of Barbie, the Grinch and Wednesday Addams. So much so that he generated $11,000 in one month in merchandise sales before demand tapered off. TikTok also resulted in commissioned artwork.

Despite the burst of success, Collins has taken a break from the TikTok stage. While he was flattered and overwhelmed by the attention as an artist, pressure also mounted to keep up the pace while being a husband and first-time dad.

"If you stop TikTok for a week, your algorithm is totally messed up," Collins said. "There was pressure; it was always like you had to keep pumping (videos) out or people would forget about you and you weren't relevant anymore."

But success on TikTok was followed by a full-time job with the Alive Music Festival, where he oversees social media accounts and creates promotional graphics and posters.

"I love everyone that follows me and supported me, and I have a lot of amazing fans, but I've found so much peace not doing TikTok every day, just speaking for me personally," said Collins, who also enjoys watching other TikTokers.

Collins admitted he hasn't researched the subject of a potential TikTok ban thoroughly.

"My initial opinion is I don't really have an opinion," he said.

While Collins relies on his job outside TikTok to earn a living, a ban would be detrimental to many small businesses, he noted.

Collins, however, said security threats linked to TikTok and other social media sites should be taken seriously.

"My thing would be if we are in danger, and if there are threats of our information getting (leaked) to China, then I'm for the ban," he said. "I think we need to be protected in that way, and obviously our iPhones and every gadget we have has so much information in it, but at some point we need to say enough is enough. If there is an actual threat, I'd obviously be for (a ban)."

Losing TikTok community 'would be a tragedy.'

Sherrill, 48, has used TikTok to raise the profile of his parody paintings under the username Dave Ruins Art.

The artist is quirky and engaging on camera, explaining the painting process to viewers. He also chronicles road trips, art shows and offers glimpses into his personal life.

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A TikTok video of his Ewok Jedi temple painting racked up mega views; it also made money through TikTok's creator fund. "I made about two months' rent," he said without revealing the specific amount. "It was a good chunk of money."

"I would hate to see it go," he said of TikTok. "We would be losing one more outlet, and I would prefer we have as many as possible because I'm personally competing with a million different content creators for the attention of all the people who are watching."

Politics makes Sherrill skeptical of the proposed ban, especially months before a presidential election.

"I think it's a lot of hullabaloo," said Sherrill, who has been recognized on airplanes and in gas stations because of his TikTok videos. "I try not to get too anxious about it. If it was a real problem, they would have talked about it two years ago."

At its core, TikTok is a community, where strangers become online friends, said Sherrill, who owns and operates Arrowhead Vintage and Handmade Goods with his wife in downtown Canton, where they sell "fun stuff for weird people."

"I would be sad if I lost those friendships that only exist through that connection," he said. "And that would be a tragedy as well, to lose those people that I really enjoy."

Reach Ed at ebalint@gannett.com

On X (formerly Twitter) @ebalintREP and on Instagram at ed_balint

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Ohio TikTok influencers oppose ban that gains momentum in Congress