The first question you might ask yourself is: Why is TikTok being banned on college campuses? Well, the State University System of Florida Board of Governors was the first to ban TikTok, along with other software and apps, on university-owned devices, which was due to the increasing landscape of cyber threats. The ban was effective immediately. After asking many students what they thought about this topic, Greg Ferrira ‘23 said, “I feel that this is unfair in a way to the students, as TikTok can be used as a resource, and you can learn about current events and news going around the world.”
The next state to follow along with this movement was Tennessee. They had just recently banned the use of TikTok at its public colleges and universities. Governor Bill Lee signed the Senate bill on April 13th, which banned individuals from accessing any social media platform on the institution’s network if the platform is operated or hosted by a company based in the People’s Republic of China. The bill, which was first introduced back in January, states that the ban does not apply to those using the apps for law enforcement purposes.
The move from Tennessee and Florida is the latest in a national trend to ban TikTok from government owned devices and networks because the app is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese company that politicians and the US government fear is sharing information with the Chinese government.
The TikTok ban on higher education started back in December of 2022, when Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt issued an executive order banning TikTok for all state agencies, employees, and contractors on government networks and devices. The University of Oklahoma sent an email to the campus community on December 20th, saying that it banned TikTok on all university campuses and on all university owned and operated devices and networks. Which includes wired and wireless networks. Langston University, the only historically Black College in the state, also announced that it would follow in the University of Oklahoma’s footsteps and ban the use and access of TikTok.
Finn Vaccaro ‘25 said, “TikTok is definitely a distraction, but it should not be taken away from college students.”
There are a total of 35 total colleges around the country that have been following this trend and which have officially banned the use and access of TikTok on campus. Some of those colleges and universities include Idaho State University, University of Florida, Florida State University, Auburn University, University of Mississippi, and many more.
If a state governor bans TikTok from government devices, colleges and universities in that state don’t have to restrict it from their internet access. Montana State University was one of the colleges that banned TikTok on wireless and wired networks. All university TikTok accounts will be suspended. Campuses may be approved for exceptions to the directive for necessary education and research.
