Entertainment
Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban: 5 essential reads on the case and its consequences
The U.S. Supreme Court mandated TikTok’s sale, citing national security risks tied to its Chinese ownership. Controversies include user data exploitation and implications for free speech and cybersecurity.

Eric Smalley, The Conversation and Matt Williams, The Conversation
The U.S. Supreme Court on Jan. 17, 2025, upheld a law requiring TikTok’s China-based parent company, ByteDance, to sell the video app by Jan. 19, 2025, or face a nationwide ban on the app. In a unanimous decision, the court rejected TikTok’s claim that the law violates its First Amendment rights.
The court’s ruling is the latest development in a lengthy saga over the fate of an app that is widely popular, especially among young Americans, but that many politicians in Washington say is a security risk.
The ruling is unlikely to be the end of the story. President Joe Biden said that he will not enforce the law in the waning hours of his administration. President-elect Donald Trump said he will reverse the ban and is reportedly considering an executive order to do so.
But why is TikTok controversial? Are the claims of it being a national security risk valid? And what will the case mean for free speech? The Conversation’s contributors have been on hand to answer these questions.
1. An agent of the Chinese state?
Politicians who wanted to ban TikTok, or at least sever its links to China, fear that the app provides a way for the Chinese Communist Party to influence Americans or use their data for malicious purposes. But how much influence does the Chinese government have on TikTok? That question is addressed by Shaomin Li, a scholar of China’s political economy and business at Old Dominion University.
Li explains that the relationship between TikTok, ByteDance and the Chinese Communist Party is nuanced – it isn’t simply a matter of officials in Beijing telling ByteDance to jump and the parent company dictating how high its subsidiary will leap. Rather, as with all companies in China, employees are under certain obligations when it comes to advancing national interests. In China, private enterprises, such as ByteDance, operate as joint ventures with the state.
“Regardless of whether ByteDance has formal ties with the party, there will be the tacit understanding that the management is working for two bosses: the investors of the company and, more importantly, their political overseers that represent the party,” Li writes. “But most importantly, when the interests of the two bosses conflict, the party trumps.”
2. Exploiting user data
The risks TikTok poses to U.S. users are similar to the risks posed by many popular apps, principally that the app collects data about you. That data, which includes contact information and website tracking, plus all data you post and messages you send through the app, is available to use or misuse by ByteDance and any other entity that has or gains access to it.
Iowa State University cybersecurity researcher Doug Jacobson writes that U.S. officials and lawmakers are concerned that the Chinese government could exploit TikTok user data to spy on U.S. citizens. Government hackers could use the TikTok data to trick users into revealing more personal information.
But if the goal is to counter Chinese hackers, banning TikTok is likely to prove too little, too late. “By some estimates, the Chinese government has already collected personal information on at least 80% of the U.S. population via various means,” Jacobson writes. “The Chinese government – along with anyone else with money – also has access to the large market for personal data.”
3. The security risks of a ban
Banning TikTok could also make U.S. users more vulnerable to hackers of all stripes. Rochester Institute of Technology computer security expert Robert Olson writes that many of the 170 million U.S. TikTok users could try to get around a ban on the app, with negative consequences for their digital safety.
If TikTok ends up banned from Apple’s and Google’s app stores, users could try to access the app elsewhere via sideloading. This practice of getting around the Apple and Google app stores leaves users vulnerable to malware posing as the TikTok app. TikTok users might also be motivated to circumvent Apple and Google security controls in order to keep the app installed, a move that would make users’ phones more vulnerable.
“I find it unlikely that a TikTok ban (is) technologically enforceable,” Olson writes. “This … legislation – aimed at improving cybersecurity – could motivate users to engage in riskier digital behavior.”
4. First Amendment concerns
In its legal challenge to the U.S. government, ByteDance claimed the government is violating its First Amendment rights. Technology law scholars Anupam Chander of Georgetown University and Gautam Hans of Cornell University write that ByteDance had grounds for its claim, and that the implications go beyond this case.
TikTok is a publisher – an online publisher of users’ videos. Forcing ByteDance to divest TikTok is a form of prior restraint – the government preventing speech before it occurs, Chander and Hans write.
“By forcing the sale of TikTok to an entity without ties to the Chinese Communist Party, Congress’ intent with the law is to change the nature of the platform,” they write. “That kind of government action implicates the core concerns that the First Amendment was designed to protect against: government interference in the speech of private parties.”
5. What about the others?
Security and legal issues aside, the forced sale to a U.S.-based company or ban of TikTok in the United States is a questionable approach to solving the problems the law aims to address: potential Chinese government influence in the U.S., harm to teens and data privacy violations, writes Arizona State media scholar Sarah Florini.
The Chinese government – and other U.S. adversaries – have long used social media apps owned by U.S. companies to attempt to influence American public opinion. TikTok is hardly alone in posing harm to teens, as the Facebook whistleblower case amply demonstrated. And vast amounts of Americans’ personal data are already available to any buyer on the open and black markets.
“Concerns about TikTok are not unfounded, but they are also not unique. Each threat posed by TikTok has also been posed by U.S.-based social media for over a decade,” Florini writes.
This is an updated version of an article originally published on Sept. 16, 2024.
Eric Smalley, Science + Technology Editor, The Conversation and Matt Williams, Senior International Editor, The Conversation
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Entertainment
Get Ready for the Premiere of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3!
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 will premiere at the 2025 Tribeca Festival from June 4-15. The series continues crew adventures aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise, exploring new themes and characters.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 Premeire:
Exciting news for Star Trek enthusiasts! According to an official announcement originally published on startrek.com, the third season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is set to premiere at the 2025 Tribeca Festival. This much-anticipated event will take place from June 4 to 15 in New York City, showcasing a lineup filled with both new and returning television programs, as well as independent episodic series.
Festival Highlights
The Tribeca Festival is renowned for its world premieres and exclusive panels featuring cast members from major networks and streaming platforms. Following the premiere screening of Season 3, attendees can look forward to an engaging conversation with key cast members, including Anson Mount (Captain Pike), Ethan Peck (Spock), Celia Rose Gooding (Uhura), Babs Olusanmokun (Benga), Carol Kane, and the creative minds behind the series, executive producers Alex Kurtzman, Akiva Goldsman, and Henry Alonso Myers.
What to Expect in Season 3
As we dive into Season 3, we reconnect with the beloved crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise, still commanded by Captain Pike. This new season picks up from the intense conclusion of Season 2, where the crew faced a harrowing encounter with the Gorn. However, as they navigate through uncharted territories, new life and civilizations await them, alongside a villain who will truly test their grit and resolve.
Strange New Worlds promises to infuse an exciting twist into the classic Star Trek narrative, elevating both beloved and new characters to new heights. Viewers can look forward to a range of thrilling adventures that explore themes of faith, duty, romance, comedy, and mystery—delivering genres never before seen in the Star Trek universe.
A Talented Ensemble Cast
The series boasts an impressive cast, including Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn, Ethan Peck, Jess Bush, Christina Chong, Celia Rose Gooding, Melissa Navia, Babs Olusanmokun, and Martin Quinn. Additionally, fans can expect appearances from guest stars such as Rhys Darby, Patton Oswalt, Cillian O’Sullivan, Melanie Scrofano, and Carol Kane, with special guest star Paul Wesley also joining the adventure.
Ticket Information
For those eager to witness the premiere, single tickets will be available for Tribeca members starting April 24, with sales opening to the general public on April 29. Be sure to visit TribecaFilm.com to learn more about the festival programming and secure your tickets. Memberships and festival passes are also available for a more immersive experience.
Where to Watch
After its premiere at the Tribeca Festival, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will stream exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S., U.K., and various regions across Latin America, Europe, and Asia. In Canada, the series will also be accessible on Paramount+, while it will stream on SkyShowtime in several other European markets.
Stay tuned for more updates as we approach the premiere date! For the latest news, follow @StarTrek on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. The adventure is about to continue—engage!
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Related Link:
https://www.startrek.com/news/strange-new-worlds-season-3-tribeca-2025-premiere
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Easter and School Holiday Escapes, A Family-Friendly Retreat at Sheraton Bali Kuta Resort

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Consumer Corner
NIKON ANNOUNCES THE NIKON Z5II: LET FULL-FRAME BE THE NEXT STEP IN YOUR CREATIVE JOURNEY
Amplify any Aesthetic & Unleash Your Full Creative Potential with the Most Feature-Packed Camera in its Class
MELVILLE, N.Y. /PRNewswire/ — Today, Nikon announced the new full-frame / FX format Z5II, an entirely new generation of intermediate-level camera that miraculously manages to fit the latest high-end features into a lightweight camera body that will help kickstart any creative spark. The Nikon Z5II is the easiest way to level up a user’s captures with full-frame image quality, incredibly fast and intelligent autofocus (AF), excellent low-light performance, one-touch film-inspired color presets and the brightest viewfinder of any competing camera.1 The new Nikon Z5II uses the same high-power EXPEED 7 image processing engine as Nikon’s highest caliber professional models, the Z8 and Z9. The benefits of this processor are immediately apparent, affording incredible levels of performance and extremely fast AF with subject detection powered by deep learning (AI) technology. This highly accurate, high-speed focus is a massive leap from its predecessor, locking in at approximately one third2 the time. In addition, the new camera now utilizes a highly sensitive back-illuminated (BSI) CMOS sensor for beautiful rendering of textures and details, even in dimly lit situations such as indoors or nighttime landscapes, with minimal noise. The Z5II further fuels your creative drive with a dedicated Picture Control button and innovative tools like Imaging Recipes and Flexible Color Picture Controls, all of which help users create a truly distinctive look with unparalleled creative control of colors. “The benefits of the Z5II go far beyond its attainable price and small size, offering users the benefits of our most advanced EXPEED 7 processing engine, a proven full-frame sensor along with unexpected pro-level features and performance,” said Fumiko Kawabata, Sr. Vice President of Marketing and Planning, Nikon Inc. “This is the camera many people have been waiting for in order to make the move to mirrorless, since nothing comes close to matching the value of features and performance in its class.” Reliably Fast Focus and Performance The AF on the Nikon Z5II is remarkably precise and super-fast, effortlessly locking-on and tracking a wide range of moving subjects. From fast-paced portraits or action shots, the system helps you to never miss a crucial moment, even when a subject is backlit. The cutting-edge AF system can detect up to nine types of subjects for stills and video, including people (faces, eyes, heads, and upper bodies), dogs, cats, birds, cars, motorcycles, bicycles, airplanes, and trains. But it’s not just the focus that’s fast—thanks to the next-generation processing power, the Z5II also offers high performance features from pro level Z models, to excel in any shoot.- 3D-tracking AF mode keeps the target subject in focus even if it moves rapidly or erratically. This allows for subject tracking, even at high burst speeds, for sharp images again and again when photographing sports, animals or other fast-moving subjects.
- The first full-frame mirrorless Nikon camera with AF-A focus mode. In this mode, the camera automatically switches between AF-S and AF-C focus modes in response to subject movement or changes in composition with still shooting. This allows the camera to automatically focus on the subject, with no setting adjustments when photographing. This new feature makes it simple to photograph pets, kids or other subjects whose movements are difficult to predict.
- Fast continuous shooting speeds3 with a maximum frame rate of 14 frames per second in mechanical shutter mode and up to 15 or 30 frames per second (electronic shutter) with full autofocus.
- Pre-Release Capture4 function when shooting in C15 and C30 modes is capable of recording images buffered up to one second before the shutter-release button is fully pressed, capturing the action before a user can react.
- Class-leading autofocus detection down to -10EV5 delivers accurate, reliable focus in dim and dark conditions—great for concerts, live performances, festivities, available light portraiture, astrophotography and more.
- A broad standard ISO sensitivity range of 100-64,000, expandable to Hi 1.7 (ISO 204,800 equivalent), delivers exceptional low-light capabilities and outstanding image quality with minimal noise. The max ISO is 51,200 for video recording.
- The 5-axis in-camera vibration reduction (VR) system provides superior image stabilization equivalent to a 7.5-stop6 increase in shutter speed at the center and a 6.0-stop increase at the peripheral areas of the frame. This allows users to create with confidence in lower light and get sharper results, even when handheld or at lower shutter speeds.
- Focus-point VR7 tailors stabilization to the area covered by the active AF point, for sharp rendering of the subject, even when it is positioned near the edge of the frame.
- Starlight View Mode makes focus and composition simple in extremely low light, while the Warm Color Display Mode helps preserve night vision when working in complete darkness.
- Extended shutter speeds up to 900 seconds (15 minutes) in manual exposure mode. Perfect for extreme long-exposure nightscapes and star trails.
- Capture immensely vivid and detailed 4K/30 UHD video, with no crop. This gives creatives the ability to shoot in 4K at full-frame, with more wide-angle freedom. For higher frame rates, the camera can also capture up to 4K/60 with a 1.5x crop.
- Flexible in-camera video recording options with 12-bit N-RAW8, 10-bit H.265, and 8-bit H.264. This is the first camera to be able to record N-RAW to an SD card.
- N-Log9 tone modes offer greater flexibility for color grading. This means Z5II users also have access to the free RED LUTs, which were developed in collaboration with RED for users to enjoy cinematic looks.
- Full HD/120p for flexibility to create 5x slow motion videos in 8-bit H.264.
- Hi-Res Zoom10 uses 4K resolution to zoom up to 2X in-camera during Full HD shooting, without any loss of quality. This is useful when using prime lenses to get closer to a subject and add a dynamic look to footage.
- Product Review Mode will seamlessly switch focus between the user and any objects that they hold up to the camera. Users can even customize the size of the active AF area.
- Upgrade streaming while connected via UVC/UAC-compliant USB port, transforming the camera into a high-quality webcam for live streaming.
- The Z5II also includes ports for headphones and microphones.
- Dual SD card slots
- Bird detection mode makes it easier to detect birds in motion and in flight.
- Equipped with Nikon’s exclusive portrait functions, including Rich Tone Portrait that realizes radiant and beautiful rendering of skin textures, and Skin Softening that smooths the skin while leaving hair, eyes, and other details sharp.
- Capture high-resolution images with Pixel Shift shooting11 to portray stunning depth and rich textures, from architectural details to rocky landscapes and vibrant artwork, creating images at a staggeringly high resolution of up to approx. 96-megapixels (must be processed with free Studio NX software).
Connect with Nikon on Facebook , X , YouTube , Instagram , Threads , and TikTok. Specifications, equipment, and release dates are subject to change without any notice or obligation on the part of the manufacturer. 1. Based on Nikon research as of April 3rd, 2025.
2. Measured in accordance with CIPA standards. The measurement values are based on the following testing conditions: Subject brightness of 10 EV; in photo mode using aperture-priority auto (A), single-servo AF (AF-S), single-point AF (center), at 70-mm focal length with the NIKKOR Z 24-70mm f/4 S.
3. Max framerate of 14 fps in mechanical shutter mode is JPEG only. C15 and C30 are JPEG only, electronic shutter modes. Rolling shutter distortion may occur depending on the type of subject and shooting conditions.
4. Available only with JPEG recording.
5. In photo mode using single-servo AF (AF-S), single-point AF (center), at ISO 100 equivalent and a temperature of 20°C/68°F with an f/1.2 lens.
6. Based on CIPA 2024 Standard. Yaw/pitch/roll compensation performance when using the NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S (telephoto end, NORMAL)
7. Only in photo mode with NIKKOR Z lenses not equipped with VR. Does not function when multiple focus points are displayed.
8. When a frame size and rate of [[FX] 4032×2268 30p], [[FX] 4032×2268 25p], [[FX] 4032×2268 24p], [[DX] 3984×2240 30p], [[DX] 3984×2240 25p], or [[DX] 3984×2240 24p] is selected for [Frame size/frame rate] in the video recording menu. Picture quality is equivalent to that of a video quality setting of [Normal]. Use of Video Speed Class 90 (V90) SD memory cards is recommended.
9. When [H.265 10-bit (MOV)] or [N-RAW 12-bit (NEV)] is selected for [Video file type] in the video recording menu.
10. Hi-Res Zoom is available when all the following conditions are met:- [FX] is selected for [Image area] > [Choose image area] in the video recording menu, [H.265 10-bit (MOV)], [H.265 8-bit (MOV)], or [H.264 8-bit (MP4)] is selected for [Video file type] in the video recording menu, and – a frame size and rate of [1920×1080; 30p], [1920×1080; 25p], or [1920×1080; 24p] is selected for [Frame size/frame rate] in the video recording menu.
11. Both the subject and the camera must be still. RAW images shot with the pixel shift shooting feature must be combined using NX Studio.
*SRP (Suggested Retail Price) listed only as a suggestion. Actual prices are set by dealers and are subject to change at any time. SOURCE Nikon Inc.
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