Nationwide TikTok ban gaining steam Daisy Jones and the Six Letter of Recommendation:

By Esther Shemia Junior Editor

Daisy Jones and the Six, by Taylor Jenkins Reid, is a historical fiction novel that follows a fictional iconic band’s rise to stardom in the 1970s and their eventual fall. It was recently adapted into a TV series currently being streamed on Amazon Prime Video. But the book stands on its own and is absolutely worth reading.

By Aleen Jaradeh Junior Editor

The U.S. government has increased their efforts to execute an official ban on TikTok throughout the country, while individual states are already taking measures to ban the app in a variety of ways.

Tiktok, an app owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, currently has 150 million American users, almost half the U.S. population. Americans use Tiktok for a multitude of reasons, whether for entertainment, promoting their businesses, or making their livelihood by posting content on the app.

However, regardless of the seemingly positive aspects the app may provide its users, the federal government has been pushing for a ban of the app on all electronic devices in the United States. Due to concerns that the Chinese government is using the app to gather sensitive data and spy on Americans, the White House announced to federal agencies in late February that they had 30 days to delete TikTok from all government-issued devices. However, the government did not just stop there. Rather, they pushed for a more extreme matter: banning TikTok from all devices nationwide. President Biden’s administration has demanded that TikTok be sold to a different company, or the app would be banned entirely.

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. said the reason for the ban is that the company which owns TikTok is Chinese. This poses significant security risks for all Americans who use the app. China’s government could have unlimited access to information about the United States, because a Chinese law requires all Chinese companies to provide the government with data if requested. The Chinese government could collect data regarding TikTok users’ browsing history, location, and personal information. “Anyone with TikTok downloaded on their device has given the [Chinese government] a backdoor to all their personal information. It’s a spy balloon into their phone,” says Michael McCaul, member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Like the federal government, several individual states have already banned use of the app on state devices and through state-provided networks, which has affected government employees. Some state university systems, such as the University of Wisconsin, have banned the use of TikTok for both staff and students. Montana recently passed a bill banning Tiktok throughout the state, the first state to do so. If Montana governor Greg Gianforte signs the bill, it would be illegal to download TikTok in the state.

The book was inspired by one of history’s most fa mous rock bands: Fleetwood Mac. The premise of the nov el is that the band members have been gathered years later for interviews on why the band broke up. This keeps readers flipping the pages to find out what happened next. Reid has such a unique and realistic writing style that when reading the book you will be questioning whether this is factual.

The early story line shows the band’s early roots and how most of them feel that their talent is underappreciated. When they are put together by famous producer Teddy Price, there is an undeniable chemistry and tension between lead singers Daisy (Riley Keough in the TV series) and Billy (Sam Claflin). They clash heavily. Billy wants full control but Daisy walks into the band without a care in the world. What’s shocking is that while they push each other to be the best musicians they can be, they both deeply love each other. However, Billy’s wife, Camila, is the anchor that holds back the spark from becoming flames. This constantly finds Billy torn between his familial ties and his addiction issues.

The series explores hot topics like the pressures of becoming famous, questions of sexuality, and the obligations of relationships, but mainly reverts back to the love triangle between Daisy, Billy, and