Free speech and digital rights groups argue TikTok law would infringe on the First Amendment

A group of nonprofits argued in a legal filing that the federal law requiring TikTok’s parent company to sell the platform, or face a ban, is an unconstitutional measure that restricts speech and makes it impossible for users to associate on the app.

The legal brief, submitted late Wednesday to a federal court in Washington, comes as TikTok and its Beijing-based parent, ByteDance, are waging a consequential legal battle against a law that would disrupt the platform’s U.S. operation. Thursday is the deadline for third-party groups to file documents in support of the two companies.

Seven nonprofits signed onto the brief, including groups that have previously expressed support for TikTok or sided with the company in a similar lawsuit against Montana last year. They include free speech and digital rights groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation and The First Amendment Coalition as well as Freedom of the Press Foundation, which advocates for public interest journalism.

In their legal filing, the nonprofits argue that the law would infringe on the First Amendment, echoing TikTok’s arguments in its lawsuit against the government. They say the Constitution doesn’t just protect TikTok’s U.S. users, but the company itself. They also argue the government’s burden to justify free speech violations is the same around national security issues as with any other matter. The government's action against TikTok also represents “a direct and serious threat” against freedom of the press, they argue.