AFP USA

President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday called for the United States to take part-ownership in TikTok and vowed to issue an executive order delaying a looming ban on the wildly popular app to allow time to “make a deal.” Trump’s announcement came hours after TikTok went dark in the United States under a law banning it in the name of national security, as a deadline for its Chinese owners ByteDance to sell its US subsidiary to non-Chinese buyers lapsed. The law however includes a clause allowing for a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward a viable deal, but so far ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.Outgoing President Joe Biden’s administration said it would leave the matter to Trump — who takes office on Monday — and that it would not enforce any ban.”I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. He said he “would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture,” arguing that the app’s value could surge to “hundreds of billions of dollars — maybe trillions.””By doing this, we save TikTok, keep it in good hands,” Trump wrote.From teenage dancers to grandmothers sharing cooking tips, TikTok has been embraced for its ability to transform ordinary users into global celebrities when a video goes viral.But it is also rife with disinformation, and its Chinese ownership has long spurred national security fears, internationally as well as in the United States.In an earlier message to dismayed users trying to access the app on Sunday, TikTok said that “we are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!”Trump, who had previously backed a TikTok ban and during his first term in office made moves towards one, did not offer further details on how such a deal would work. Sunday’s blackout came after the US Supreme Court on Friday upheld the legislation banning it pending any sale.But the app now has a fan in Trump, who — since signing an executive order stepping up pressure on ByteDance to sell in 2020 — has since credited the app with connecting him to younger voters.It is unclear what the incoming president can do to lift the ban unless ByteDance sells, however.”Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof,” warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.- ‘I love TikTok’ -Besides removing TikTok from app stores, the law requires Apple and Google to block new downloads, with the companies liable for penalties of up to $5,000 per user if the app is accessed.Oracle, which hosts TikTok’s servers, would also be legally obligated to enforce the ban.Other social media platforms such as X were flooded with memes and comments mourning the move Sunday — though some posts were more cynical, with many pointing to Trump’s own previous efforts to ban TikTok.In Europe, TikTok’s suspension drew praise from the foreign minister of Estonia — among the countries most resilient to disinformation, according to the European Media Literacy Index. “Banning TikTok must be considered in Europe as well,” Margus Tsahkna said on X.The ban even became a hot topic at the Australian Open in Melbourne, where American tennis player Coco Gauff scrawled “RIP TikTok USA” on a courtside camera.”I love TikTok, it’s like an escape… hopefully it comes back,” the world number three told reporters.- Offers for TikTok -A last-minute proposal made Saturday by the highly valued start-up Perplexity AI offered a merger with the US subsidiary of TikTok, a source with knowledge of the deal told AFP.The proposal did not include a price but the source estimated it would cost at least $50 billion.Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has also made an offer to purchase TikTok’s US activities.Meanwhile, thousands of worried TikTok users turned to Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram, ahead of the suspension. Nicknamed “Red Note” by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store last week. 

TikTok went dark in the United States on Sunday as millions of dismayed users found themselves barred from the popular app, with President-elect Donald Trump vowing to seek a reprieve.Hours before a law banning the Chinese-owned platform in the name of national security came into effect, TikTok was removed from app stores and told users attempting to log on that under the new legislation “you can’t use TikTok for now.”It said “we are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!”Trump, who had previously backed a ban and during his first term in office made moves towards one, posted “Save TikTok!” on his own Truth Social platform early Sunday. The blackout followed a US Supreme Court decision on Friday to uphold the legislation banning the video-sharing platform, unless Chinese owner ByteDance reached a deal to sell it to non-Chinese buyers by Sunday.From teenage dancers to grandmothers sharing cooking tips, TikTok has been embraced for its ability to transform ordinary users into global celebrities when a video goes viral.It also now has a fan in Trump, who since signing an executive order stepping up pressure on ByteDance to sell in 2020 has credited the app with connecting him to younger voters.After discussing TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump told NBC News on Saturday that he could activate a 90-day reprieve after he reclaims the Oval Office on Monday.The law allows a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward a viable deal, but ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.Outgoing President Joe Biden’s administration has said it will leave the matter to Trump and that it would not enforce any ban.It is unclear what the incoming president can do to lift the ban unless ByteDance sells, however.”Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof,” warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.- ‘I love TikTok’ -Besides removing TikTok from app stores, the law requires Apple and Google to block new downloads, with the companies liable for penalties of up to $5,000 per user if the app is accessed.Oracle, which hosts TikTok’s servers, would also be legally obligated to enforce the ban.Other social media platforms such as X were flooded with memes and comments mourning the move early Sunday — though some posts were more cynical, with many pointing to Trump’s own previous efforts to ban TikTok. “Nothing is more American than banning TikTok before AR-15s,” posted X user David Leavitt, referring to an automatic weapon often used in US mass shootings. In Europe, TikTok’s suspension drew praise from the foreign minister of Estonia — among the countries most resilient to disinformation, according to the European Media Literacy Index. “Banning TikTok must be considered in Europe as well,” Margus Tsahkna said on X, adding that the US banned app has been used to spread disinformation and manipulate elections, and is known to pose a national security risk. The ban even became a hot topic at the Australian Open tennis in Melbourne, where American player Coco Gauff scrawled “RIP TikTok USA” on a courtside camera.”I could not access it after my match,” Gauff said after winning her fourth-round match.”I love TikTok, it’s like an escape… hopefully it comes back,” the world number three told reporters.- Offers for TikTok -A last-minute proposal made Saturday by the highly valued start-up Perplexity AI offered a merger with the US subsidiary of TikTok, a source with knowledge of the deal told AFP.The proposal did not include a price but the source estimated it would cost at least $50 billion.Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has also made an offer to purchase TikTok’s US activity.Meanwhile, thousands of worried TikTok users turned to Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram, ahead of the suspension. Nicknamed “Red Note” by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store last week. 

Joe Biden will travel to South Carolina on Sunday, his last full day as US president, where he will mark a national holiday honoring civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr.Biden will visit Royal Missionary Baptist Church in Charleston, where he will attend services and speak about “the continued fight to make Dr King’s dream a reality,” a White House official said.He will also attend an event at the city’s International African American Museum.Monday is a national holiday in the United States honoring King, the Nobel Peace Prize winner who advocated for the use of non-violent resistance in the fight for equal rights for Black Americans. He was assassinated in 1968.Monday is also the day Donald Trump will be sworn in to succeed Biden as president. The White House said Biden’s “last official trip as president… will continue his long relationship with the state of South Carolina.”The state was pivotal in Biden’s path to securing the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in 2020. After lackluster showings in the initial nomination contests, Biden won a convincing victory in South Carolina’s primary, an affirmation that he retained significant backing among Black voters. Charleston is also the home of the historic Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, where a white shooter killed nine Black worshippers in 2015. Biden attended the funeral for Emanuel AME’s pastor, Clementa Pinckney, following the mass shooting perpetrated by a white gunman who had written a racist manifesto before the killings. In a 2024 address at Emanuel AME, Biden said he would not have been elected president without the support of the congregation and “the Black community of South Carolina.”

A clandestine tunnel discovered on the US-Mexico border allowing entry from Ciudad Juarez into the Texan city of El Paso will be sealed by Mexican authorities, an army official said Saturday, adding that its construction was under investigation.Discovered on January 10 by US and Mexican security agencies, the tunnel measures approximately 300 meters (1,000 feet) in length on the Mexican side and is equipped with lighting, ventilation and is reinforced to prevent collapses.Hidden in a storm sewer system operating between both cities, its access is about 1.8 meters high and 1.2 meters wide (6 feet high and 4 feet wide), making for easy passage of people or contraband, said General Jose Lemus, commander of Ciudad Juarez’s military garrison, which is guarding the tunnel.The tunnel’s construction “must have taken a long time… it could have been one or two years,” Lemus told reporters, declining to give details about how long it had been operating as well as its possible builders and operators.He said the Mexican Attorney General’s Office was responsible for the investigation and would be in charge of determining if there was complicity by the authorities due to the fact that it was built without them noticing.Lemus also said clues about the tunnel’s existence and location were discussed by human traffickers on social media platforms like TikTok.Ahead of the US presidential inauguration of Donald Trump on Monday, both sides of the US-Mexico border have reinforced security measures, as the returning Republican has vowed a massive deportation of migrants soon after he takes office. In the state of Chihuahua, which includes Ciudad Juarez, authorities reported a fire in a temporary camp for undocumented migrants, which led to the evacuation of 39 adults and 17 minors, according to the state police.According to the Mexican newspaper Reforma, the fire was started by some of the migrants who were camping there to resist attempts by immigration authorities to detain them and transfer them to Mexico City for later deportation.The National Institute of Migration did not respond to AFP’s requests for comment. 

TikTok disconnected access to its users in the United States late Saturday shortly before a national ban on the app was to take effect, with President-elect Donald Trump unable to intervene until he takes office.”A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the US,” said a message to users attempting to use the app. “Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now.” “We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office,” the message added. “Please stay tuned!”After months of legal tussles, the US Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law that would ban the popular video-sharing platform in the name of national security, unless its Chinese owners reach a deal to sell it to non-Chinese buyers by Sunday.From teenage dancers to grandmothers sharing cooking tips, TikTok has been embraced for its ability to transform ordinary users into global celebrities when a video goes viral.It also has a fan in Trump, who has credited the app with connecting him to younger voters, contributing to his election victory in November.After discussing TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump told NBC News on Saturday that he could activate a 90-day reprieve after he reclaims the Oval Office.”I think that would be, certainly, an option that we look at. The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate,” he said, ahead of Monday’s inauguration.”If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday.”The law allows a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward a viable deal, but TikTok owner ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.The administration of outgoing President Joe Biden has said it will leave the matter to Trump, and White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre qualified TikTok’s latest statements as a “stunt.”After the court defeat, TikTok CEO Shou Chew appealed to Trump, thanking him for his “commitment to work with us to find a solution.”Trump “truly understands our platform,” he added.Chew is also set to attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday.The law requires Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, blocking new downloads. The companies could face penalties of up to $5,000 per user who can access the app.Oracle, which hosts TikTok’s servers, would also be legally obligated to enforce the ban.None of the companies responded to requests for comment on Saturday.- Offers for TikTok -A last-minute proposal made Saturday by the highly-valued start-up Perplexity AI offered a merger with the US subsidiary of TikTok, a source with knowledge of the deal told AFP.That deal could allow parent company ByteDance a possible solution without selling off the app entirely. The plan, first reported by US broadcaster CNBC, would create a new joint venture combining the assets of US TikTok and Perplexity AI, which has been backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. The proposal did not include a price for the transaction, but the source estimated it would be at least $50 billion.Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has also made an offer to purchase TikTok’s US activity and said he’s “ready to work with the company and President Trump to complete a deal.”Canadian investor Kevin O’Leary, who is involved in that offer, told Fox News that ByteDance was offered $20 billion for TikTok’s US operation.He acknowledged the legal uncertainty over the case, with it remaining an open question whether an executive order by Trump to halt the ban would override the law.”Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof,” warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.Sarah Kreps, a professor of government and law at Cornell University, said that “if an executive order conflicts with an existing law, the law takes precedence, and the order can be struck down by the courts.”With TikTok forced into a shutdown, its US-based rivals Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts could reap benefits.Thousands of worried TikTok users have protectively turned to Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram. Nicknamed “Red Note” by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store this week. 

When Serena Null saw the flames roaring toward her family home in the Los Angeles suburb of Altadena, she ran to find her pet Domino, but the cat eluded her grasp.”We could see the fire from the front door, and so we just didn’t have enough time, and we had to leave him,” the 27-year-old Null said.The ferocious blaze reduced her mother-in-law’s house to ashes, and a search of the blackened rubble the following day proved fruitless. Null feared she would never see her green-eyed friend again.But on Friday, to her amazement, she and Domino were reunited.”I just was so relieved and just so happy that he was here,” a tearful Null told AFP outside the NGO Pasadena Humane, where Domino — suffering singed paws, a burnt nose and a high level of stress — had been taken after being rescued. Domino is one of several hundred pets brought to the center as the Eaton fire roared through Altadena, forcing thousands of people to flee their homes in such a rush that many left with nothing but the clothes on their backs.Pasadena Humane was accustomed to dealing with crises, but the sudden explosion in demand was without precedent.  “We’ve never had to take 350 at once in one day before,” said the center’s Kevin McManus. “It’s been really overwhelming.”- Search and rescue – Many animals were delivered by their owners, who had lost their homes and had to find temporary housing for pets while they themselves stayed in hotels or shelters. But others were brought by rescue workers and volunteers. The center says on its website that when it receives a report of a pet left behind, it sends “search and rescue teams as quickly as possible in areas that are safe to enter.” The center opened up as much space as it could to accommodate the influx, even placing some pets in offices.And it was not just dogs and cats, McManus said. There were species rarely seen in an animal shelter — like a pony, which spent a night in the center. More than 10 days after the fires began raging through Los Angeles, the center still houses some 400 animals, including rabbits, turtles, lizards and birds, including a huge green, red and blue macaw.Many of the pets’ owners, still without permanent housing, come to the center to visit their animal friends — people like Winston Ekpo, who came to see his three German shepherds, Salt, Pepper and Sugar.As firefighters in the area make progress, many animal owners are able to come and recover their pets, tears of sadness turning to tears of joy. – Back home – The center’s website posts photos of recovered animals, including information on the time and place where they were rescued.McManus said some 250 pets have so far been returned to their owners. One of them, curiously, was Bombon, who had actually been lost long before the fires.  The Chihuahua mix went missing from its Altadena home in November, said 23-year-old Erick Rico.  He had begun to resign himself to never seeing Bombon again.Then one day a friend told him he had seen a picture on the Pasadena Humane website that caught his attention.When Rico saw it, he was so excited he couldn’t sleep that night — “it looked exactly like him,” he said — and he arrived at the center early the following morning.When he saw his owners, Bombon “started crying a lot, wagging his tail and everything. He was very, very happy.”After the painful days of uncertainty, Rico too finally felt relief. “Now I’m just happy that he’s back home.”

For Curtis Sparrer, a work-from-home evangelist, an office is nothing less than a “corporate jail.” Five years after the Covid-19 pandemic sent workers scrambling for home, laptops under their arm, Sparrer methodically challenges the arguments made by corporate America as it pushes for a full-time return to office.The issue has even become increasingly political.The incoming Trump administration, through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, plans to eliminate all remote work for federal employees.”When you have a physical office, there is an implicit lack of trust. You need to see people there physically to make sure they’re doing their work,” the PR boss told AFP from his San Francisco apartment, overlooking the city’s iconic rooftops.In the wake of the work-from-home revolution, hybrid work became the norm in the United States, with few exceptions such as Goldman Sachs and Tesla, which quickly mandated full-time office attendance. Now, several major companies are abandoning the compromise approach.Amazon recently required engineers and administrative staff to return five days a week. According to a survey conducted by the Blind professional social network last September, more than 90 percent of employees are unhappy with this decision.On Reddit, users report having turned down interviews to work for the e-commerce and cloud giant because of the policy. Some speculate it’s a veiled downsizing strategy, though they believe the company founded by Jeff Bezos risks losing its top talent.- Chewing food -JPMorgan Chase’s March announcement ending telework met similar resistance.Employees posted so many comments about concerns — from commuting costs to child care — on an internal platform that the bank shut down that section, according to The Wall Street Journal.JPMorgan CFO Jeremy Barnum addressed the issue during a press call, and acknowledged the risk of losing valuable employees, saying: “We are very much not hoping for attrition as a function of return to office.” “I’m disappointed that Amazon and others dragged people back to the office when we’ve been making so much progress in making work-from-home a national norm,” Sparrer laments.When founding Bospar in January 2015, Sparrer deliberately chose not to rent office space, both to save money and to recruit talent beyond San Francisco and New York. Ten years later, he stands by that decision.Office environments inherently create inequality, he said.”Someone gets the corner office with windows while another gets a cubicle, creating friction,” he explained. “There’s also a higher likelihood of sexual harassment, illness spreading, and daily annoyances from office gossip to hearing colleagues chew their food.”Sparrer particularly emphasized telecommuting’s environmental benefits, noting that most Americans drive to work in gas-guzzling cars.”The typical office building is a polluting nightmare,” he said. His company’s research suggests that remote workers are more likely to cook at home instead of ordering delivery and to recycle their waste.- ‘When, where or how’ -According to the “Flex Index” study by IT solutions company Scoop, by the end of 2024, about one-third of US companies required full-time office presence, 38 percent maintained a hybrid approach, and less than 30 percent offered complete employee choice.Health care software provider DrFirst exemplifies the successful transition to remote work. The company, which previously maintained three offices in Arizona and Maryland, shifted its 400 employees to permanent telework in 2023 based on employee feedback.”Over 85 percent of our people reported that working remotely improved their overall well-being, whether mental or physical health, and reduced stress,” said Mathew Carrico, the company’s vice president of human resources. “Productivity remained high.”To maintain company culture, DrFirst established online social groups, regular check-ins, and a performance system based on quarterly objectives. “We don’t dictate when, where, or how people work — that’s where trust comes in,” Carrico explained. “But we maintain accountability through results, just as we would in an office.”Heather Happe, a 14-year DrFirst veteran, appreciates escaping rush-hour traffic. “There’s that slippery slope of knowing when to stop working, but you learn to set boundaries,” she said. “I can spend more time with my son, pets, and plants!”

Donald Trump landed in Washington on Saturday ahead of his inauguration, with the billionaire Republican set to attend a series of events and celebrations before reclaiming the presidency. Trump, who arrived with his wife Melania and other family members at Dulles International Airport, headed to a private event, including a fireworks show, at his golf club in Virginia outside Washington.Earlier Saturday, Trump told NBC News that he plans to sign a record number of executive orders after being sworn in, beginning “right after” he delivers his inaugural address on Monday. He said the number of orders he will sign after taking office had not yet been determined but the figure will be “record-setting.”Asked if it would exceed 100, Trump said “at least in that category.”The president-elect is expected to sign orders undoing many of the policies advanced during President Joe Biden’s outgoing administration. Trump’s promises for Day 1 of his new term also include a mass deportation program.The expulsion of undocumented migrants will “begin very, very quickly,” Trump told NBC.”I can’t say which cities because things are evolving. And I don’t think we want to say what city. You’ll see it firsthand,” he said in the phone interview.- Raids -Hardline immigration official Tom Homan, whom Trump has named his “border czar,” told The Washington Post Saturday that the incoming administration was rethinking its initial moves following media leaks.Multiple US outlets had reported the Trump administration planned a major raid in Chicago on Tuesday. Trump’s team “hasn’t made a decision yet,” Homan told the paper.”We’re looking at this leak and will make a decision based on this leak.” Homan added that he did not know why Chicago had become the focus of media reports but that the new administration will arrest people they deem “public safety threats” from “day one.””We’ll be arresting people across the country, uninhibited by any prior administration guidelines,” he said. Recent inaugurations have been held on the steps of the US Capitol overlooking the National Mall, but Trump announced Friday the ceremony was moving indoors because of unusually cold weather forecast to hit Washington. “I think we made the right decision,” he told NBC. “The weather was really looking bad in terms of the coldness, and I think it would have been dangerous for a lot of people.”Following Saturday’s private party, Trump is expected to lay a wreath at Arlington National Cemetery on Sunday before attending a rally of his supporters in Washington.He is also scheduled to address a dinner event on Sunday.  Thousands of demonstrators marched through the streets of Washington on Saturday in protest over Trump’s policies.

TikTok has pledged to “go dark” in the United States on Sunday, threatening access for 170 million app users without 11th-hour guarantees from the government, as President-elect Donald Trump says he is considering a reprieve — after he takes office.After months of legal tussles, the US Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law that would ban the popular video-sharing platform in the name of national security, unless its Chinese owners reach a deal to sell it to non-Chinese buyers by Sunday.Only months after overwhelmingly backing the law, lawmakers and officials were now fretting about the ban, with all eyes on whether Trump can swoop in and find a way to save the app.From teenage dancers to grandmothers sharing cooking tips, TikTok has been embraced for its ability to transform ordinary users into global celebrities when a video goes viral.It also has a fan in Trump, who has credited the app with connecting him to younger voters, contributing to his election victory in November.After discussing TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday, Trump told NBC News on Saturday that he could activate a 90-day reprieve from the ban after he reclaims the Oval Office.”I think that would be, certainly, an option that we look at. The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate,” he said, ahead of Monday’s inauguration.”If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday.”The law allows a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward a viable deal, but TikTok owner ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.TikTok said late Friday its US services would “go dark” unless the government “immediately provides a definitive statement to satisfy the most critical service providers assuring non-enforcement” of the law calling for the platform’s ban.The administration of outgoing President Joe Biden has said it will leave the matter to Trump and White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre qualified TikTok’s latest statements as a “stunt.”After the court defeat, TikTok CEO Shou Chew appealed to Trump, thanking him for his “commitment to work with us to find a solution.”Trump “truly understands our platform,” he added.TikTok has been lobbying furiously to thwart the law’s implementation, with Chew set to attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday.The law requires Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, blocking new downloads. The companies could face penalties of up to $5,000 per user who can access the app.Oracle, which hosts TikTok’s servers, would also be legally obligated to enforce the ban.But it was not immediately clear how quickly users would feel the effects, and the Justice Department said implementing the ban could take time.None of the companies responded to requests for comment on Saturday.- Offers for TikTok -A last-minute proposal made Saturday by the highly-valued start-up Perplexity AI offered a merger with the US subsidiary of TikTok, a source with knowledge of the deal told AFP.That deal could allow parent company ByteDance a possible solution without selling off the app entirely. The plan, first reported by US broadcaster CNBC, would see the creation of a new joint venture combining the assets of US TikTok and Perplexity AI, which has been backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. The proposal did not include a price for the transaction, but the source estimated it would be at least $50 billion.Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has also made an offer to purchase TikTok’s US activity and said he’s “ready to work with the company and President Trump to complete a deal.”Canadian investor Kevin O’Leary, who is involved in that offer, told Fox News that ByteDance was offered $20 billion for TikTok’s US operation.He acknowledged the legal uncertainty over the case, with it remaining an open question whether an executive order by Trump to halt the ban would override the law.”Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof,” warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.Sarah Kreps, a professor of government and law at Cornell University, said “if an executive order conflicts with an existing law, the law takes precedence, and the order can be struck down by the courts.”If TikTok is forced into a shutdown, its US-based rivals Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts would benefit.Thousands of worried TikTok users have protectively turned to Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram. Nicknamed “Red Note” by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store this week.