Skift

Episode Notes The U.S. government could follow in the footsteps of several states that have enacted bans on their agencies using TikTok. So how would a national TikTok ban affect the U.S. tourism industry? Global Tourism Reporter Dawit Habtemariam writes a ban would be a huge blow to the industry’s global marketing efforts.  Habtemariam reports that U.S. tourism boards have increased their marketing on TikTok since 2021, noting the platform enables them to be less reliant on Google to reach travelers. TikTok has over 750 million monthly users worldwide. But Habtemariam notes there’s a push to ban TikTok in the U.S. due to concerns about its connection to the Chinese government and potential risk to U.S. national security.   One travel marketing executive said a national ban would drive tourism boards to redirect their advertising dollars to platforms like Instagram and YouTube Shorts. Habtemariam adds that destinations would lose insight into the experiences of international travelers, which would hamper the