The recent Supreme Court decision to support a law requiring TikTok to be sold or banned has prompted significant shifts in the social media landscape. Amidst these changes, Northwestern School of Communication professors Sulafa Zidani and Erik Nisbet are offering insights into the growing popularity of "RedNote," a Chinese-owned app that many former TikTok users are now adopting.

Prior to this ruling, RedNote emerged as the most downloaded social media application. This trend is part of a broader movement where users have been migrating to alternative platforms. Previously, right-leaning users shifted towards platforms like Truth Social and Rumble, while left-leaning individuals moved away from X and Meta due to concerns over hate speech and misinformation.

Professor Zidani comments on this trend: “While U.S. companies like Meta, Google or X may hope that a TikTok ban would lead to U.S.-based users flocking to social platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and X, what we are seeing is significant movement towards the Chinese platform RedNote (also known as Xiaohongshu). Through this movement, U.S. internet users are sending a pretty clear message to U.S.-owned companies and to congress that they prefer TikTok’s design and algorithm over their local competitors and do not mind sharing their data with TikTok.”

Professor Nisbet adds: “Bipartisan national security concerns over TikTok’s potential shutdown are driving users to explore alternatives, including the Chinese-owned RedNote. This fragmentation of the American social media landscape — where users are increasingly siloed by ideology and nationality — mirrors the deep polarization and rising populist nationalism within our society.”

For further commentary or interviews with Professors Zidani or Nisbet, contact Stephen Lewis at stephen.j.lewis@northwestern.edu.