TikTok’s days may be numbered. Here’s why Iowa content creators say that would be ‘detrimental’

Cowboy Jen still remembers her first big break on TikTok.

By the end of her first year using it in 2020, Newhall content creator Jen Rowray managed to accumulate over 10,000 followers after her daughter introduced her to the social media app teenagers use to record viral dance trends.

Rowray, a proudly-identifying butch lesbian who tells stories about life’s challenges and the joys of hobby farming, used to blog on Tumblr. But before long, she realized her 13-year-old was onto something more serious than silly.

“I’m a storyteller by nature. Very quickly, I realized the power of the algorithm and how I can, tenfold, make an outreach with spoken stories,” she said.

One of her biggest videos in 2023 earned 1.7 million views simply by talking about her family. It also earned her first check from the TikTok Creator Fund for $2,400.

“That’s the biggest check I’ve ever gotten,” said Rowray, 56.

That helped her finally insulate her basement after the 2020 derecho. It also helped her to make enough that year to pay state income taxes — for the first time in her life.

@cowboyjen Replying to @stormmm.__ #butchmom #butch #lesbian #gaymarriage #adoption #lesbianmoms #singlemom #mom #parenting ♬ original sound - cowboyjen🤠

Mason Corkery and his pet cow, Gucci, have captured the hearts of hundreds of thousands around the world, plus millions of “likes,” from Buchanan County. Gucci’s claim to fame is a viral clip of him stuffed in the back seat of a pickup truck, being driven to a local Dairy Queen for a “pup cup.”

Since then, Gucci has become a well-traveled cow, venturing to plenty of other establishments and festivals.

It has given a comedian and his furry friend a chance to entertain. But more importantly, it’s given Corkery a chance to show others the difficult realities facing small dairy farms being pushed out of the industry — like the one his family used to have in Jesup.

@iowacholodoc Repost because I think we can do better 😄 #gucciherd #cowtok #dairyqueen #iowa ♬ original sound - Mason Corkery

“It’s a platform anybody can do. With TikTok, you can become internet famous overnight,” said creator Ashley Evans, whose family is among Cedar Rapids’ most successful TikTok creators.

Her interracial family did just that when they adopted a Black son after struggling with infertility. Within six months of posting videos of the adoption journey, they had garnered almost 1 million followers, sparked debates and changed hearts and minds by showing their family’s everyday life.

Four years later, with 2.4 million followers, the former social media novices have turned it into a full-time job.

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But as the uncertainty of TikTok’s future lingers under a looming ban passed by Congress and signed by then-President Joe Biden — and upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court — these Eastern Iowans are just a few of the content creators who could soon be left with no audience.

“For it to completely go away would be so detrimental to people,” Evans said.

More than an app

For 170 million Americans, TikTok is more than an app on their phones. Its daily hook with short-form videos is more than “somebody’s attachment to an old article of clothing,” as Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito analogized before ruling in favor of the government’s impending ban of the app.

For Iowans and Americans alike, the app’s proprietary algorithm is a lifeline to niche communities, local connections in real life and rapidly-changing information they often can’t find on their own or articulate through Google searches.

“Biden, Trump, all our presidential candidates have a TikTok account. Frankly, if China wants to watch me watch cat videos and speak to other lesbians about our struggles, then whatever.” —Jen Rowray, TikTok creator

And for over 1 million content creators ranging from hobbyists to full-timers, it’s a source of income and for brand building that’s invaluable in the world’s booming digital economy.

Thanks to TikTok funding and income from brand partnerships, former nurse Evans was able to quit her job and become a stay-at-home mom for her growing family in 2022. The family since has started to produce content for other platforms, like YouTube and Instagram, which can be tough to break into for beginners.

The family’s online success has translated well offline, too. In 2022, they signed their first book deal.

With just a couple hours of making videos and interacting with viewers each day, Cowboy Jen’s income as a content creator can vary from $200 to $800 a month. For the woman who works full-time at a dog kennel plus other seasonal jobs, that’s nothing to sneeze at.

Last year, she earned $7,000 on TikTok — enough to take a vacation without the stress of working extra hours.

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“For it to completely go away would be so detrimental to people.” —Ashley Evans, TikTok content creator

Income from the Gucci’s videos has allowed his handler to buy a more comfortable trailer for the now-2,100-pound cow. Every year, they visit the Waterloo Irish Festival, nursing homes, bars and schools for educational and recreational opportunities.

“There’s a shock and awe factor I enjoy. You don’t see a cow at a bar or a cow at a football game very often,” Corkery said. “It felt good to be able to do that.”

How TikTok works, and why it’s different

The algorithm central to TikTok’s success and popularity is vastly different from the structure of other social media giants like Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

On Facebook, a user’s content feed often is dictated by friends. On Instagram, it’s who you follow or whose name you type into the search bar. On YouTube, you have to decide which video you want to click on next based on its title.

But on TikTok, a simple flick of the thumb is all users need to introduce themselves to endless content they might not have thought to articulate in the search bar. No other input or specification is needed — the app figures out which video to show you next.

Through the “For You Page,” scrolling and watching content is all users need to do to generate new videos they may enjoy, hear the other side of an argument they just watched, or see breaking news around the world that traditional media has not yet covered.

If the app senses you like a particular video, it may bring you back — unprompted — when that content creator posts an update to a life story or a sequel in a creative series.

Its tools have made content creation easier than competitors with in-app editing and intuitive design that doesn’t require a computer or expensive software.

Features like “stitch” allow creators to get in on other conversations by attaching a reaction to the end of another creator’s popular sound bite. The “duet” allows creators to record their reaction to others videos and post them in a single clip, side-by-side.

Why the government wants to ban it

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One day before President Donald Trump’s inauguration last month, the app went dark for American users, with fears it could be permanent. It came back online less than 24 hours later with a message thanking Trump for his support. But the length of its reprieve and the path to its long-term survival is unclear.

Federal law ultimately passed along bipartisan lines in Congress and signed by Biden in April 2024 is set to ban the app, owned by Chinese parent company ByteDance, unless is it sold to an American buyer.

The federal government has argued the ban is necessary for national security, with hypothetical concerns about the Chinese government’s manipulation of content and collection of American user data and personal information.

ByteDance said the app and its algorithm — the intellectual property responsible for its success — are not for sale.

Content creators don’t buy the argument

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Content creators call national security concerns a thinly-veiled attempt to suppress freedom of expression, at best.

Rowray, for example, connects with younger LGBTQ followers who have never seen someone like her — an older butch lesbian.

“Some of the women, especially younger ones, want to see those who have made it to 30, 40, 50 — and are happy,” Rowray said. “That it’s possible to (live in) a red state. It’s possible to have that thing where you shouldn’t belong, but you do.”

The power of TikTok is that, through mindless scrolling that could easily amount to a waste of time on other apps, users can make powerful connections not just in an echo chamber, but to worlds that look and think differently.

That, Rowray contends, does not benefit politicians who capitalize on fear and division.

“When I can sit on an app and see someone who votes differently from me, now he’s human,” she said. “He’s not just a random person I’m not supposed to talk to. Now he has humanity.”

Corkery also believes the arguments about data manipulation are a cover for something else. What that might be, he is unsure. He has found TikTok to be a vibrant place to exchange ideas, educate and build community.

“It’s opened people’s eyes to how much personality these farm animals can have. Cows aren’t just a number,” Corkery said. “It’s kind of opened the world to inside the door (to see) how the farming industry is.”

What they could lose and where they’ll go

Corkery doesn’t want to move content to platforms owned by Meta, like Facebook and Instagram, which he thinks are too saturated with advertising.

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And even if he did, his success might be a long shot. Now full-grown, Gucci’s momentum that started as a calf would be lost if they had to start from scratch.

Evans, now a mother of two, doesn’t know what to believe. Like many content creators dazed by the constant whiplash about the app’s future, she remains skeptical of the government’s arguments.

The night before the ban was set to go into effect, her husband posted a video of her crying as her son, Abriel, tried to comfort her.

@happilyevansafterr TikTok truly changed our lives and saying goodbye to all 2.4 million of you is more heartbreaking than I ever thought it would be! 😭 THANK YOU for the love, support, and unforgettable memories we made here! We hope to see you on other platforms! (happilyevansafterr on all)! 💔#tiktokban #goodbye #husbandwife #fypage ♬ original sound - Steven & Ashley

“I wasn’t crying because of the income. There were so many memories we made over the years not just through videos, but being able to make a job out of it,” she said. “We’ve been able to provide opportunities we never would’ve had.”

Rowray, who is working on a contingency plan through YouTube, said arguments about data privacy ring hollow. She’s more concerned about Facebook, Instagram and other social media apps that have been caught in compromising situations with leaks of sensitive data.

“Biden, Trump, all our presidential candidates have a TikTok account,” Rowray said. “Frankly, if China wants to watch me watch cat videos and speak to other lesbians about our struggles, then whatever.”

Supporters of TikTok highlight the fact that its data is stored on American servers, and three of the five members on its board of directors are American. TikTok is not available in China.

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Some have considered RedNote, the Chinese social media app that many TikTok users have migrated to.

Its Chinese name, Xiaohongshu, translates to “Little Red Book,” in English — a phrase that refers to a collection of sayings by Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong. Even with TikTok back online, many American users have stayed there as an act of protest.

If TikTok comes under control of companies like Meta or leaders like X owner Elon Musk, some creators say they will leave, no matter the app’s legality.

Others will simply log off to less fanfare than they arrived to.

“I didn’t plan to go viral, but I’m willing to go out to pasture quietly,” Corkery said.

Comments: Features reporter Elijah Decious can be reached at (319) 398-8340 or elijah.decious@thegazette.com.

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