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Montana business owner worried about possible TikTok ban in the state

Caroline Nelson - Little Creek Lamb and Beef on TikTok
Posted at 5:55 PM, Mar 14, 2023
and last updated 2023-03-15 11:17:52-04

A bill that could ban TikTok is working its way through the Montana Legislature, and for some businesses in the Treasure State, banning TikTok is much more than losing an entertainment app.

Caroline Nelson and her husband are first-generation ranchers who advertise their business, Little Creek Lamb & Beef, using TikTok. Without the app, their main source of advertising would be gone.

“For me, as a small business owner, I get very nervous at the idea that our ability to market our products would be, you know, shut down," Nelson says.

Caroline Nelson - Little Creek Lamb and Beef on TikTok

She explained, “Us right now, especially because we're first generation, we're kind of an unconventional way of coming into ranching. We are very dependent on these other forms of marketing. Social media is 100% of how we get our products out there.”

TikTok gained most of its popularity in 2019 and became one of the most popular social media apps.

The bill to ban TikTok has successfully passed the Montana Senate and is now heading to the House.

In December 2022, Governor Greg Gianforte issued a directive banning the use of TikTok on state-owned devices and networks.

MT State Senator Shelley Vance (R-Belgrade) said in a recent statement:

"The application is a major threat to our national security. We know the Chinese Communist Party can use it to spy on Americans by tracking locations and keeping other personal information."

The proposed bill holds TikTok and app stores accountable, not individual users.

I contacted Kyler Nerison, communications director for Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen and the Montana Department of Justice, to ask how the state would enforce this ban.

He said, "The Department of Justice would fine app stores or TikTok $10,000 for each discrete violation and $10,000 for each day that a violation continues."

Nelson believes a ban like this isn't in the best interest of Montana businesses.

“Small businesses like me, I don't just sell to Montanans, I sell everywhere," says Nelson, "So if I can't market on TikTok or on any social platform, it puts Montanans at a unique disadvantage compared to other small businesses in other states."

@bigskycaroline The calm before the calving season storm. #ranching #montana #dayinthelife ♬ original sound - The Brothers Comatose

“We actually had a viral video on TikTok a couple of weeks ago that allowed us to reach, it was like, half a million people and it allowed us to double one whole arm of our business, doubled literally overnight,” says Nelson.

She hopes that instead of banning the app altogether, there can be a middle ground.

“I understand the need to protect Montanans' data," says Nelson, "To me, I'm like, is there a middle ground that doesn't absolutely take us out at the knees?”


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