Montana Courts First Amendment Battle After Banning TikTok Entirely

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) signed a bill into law on Wednesday banning TikTok in the state, marking a nationwide first that is expected to face a legal challenge that would delay its expected start date of Jan. 1, 2024. “Today, Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans’ private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party,” Gianforte said in a news release. A spokesperson for TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, said in a statement that the legislation “infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok.” Without confirming whether a lawsuit would be filed, the spokesperson added that the company plans to “defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana.” The American Civil Liberties Union similarly condemned the move, saying it “flouts the First Amendment.” TikTok has over 150 million users in the United States, with lawmakers growing increasingly vocal in recent months over concerns that the app could allow the Chinese government to access sensitive user data.