The US Supreme Court is scheduled to begin Listen to oral arguments at 10 a.m. ET today in a closely watched case that could result TikTok is banned in the US the day before President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office on January 20. WIRED journalists Makena Kelly, Zeyi Yang and Louise Matsakis are watching live and will bring you the most important updates from our courtroom and analysis.
Congress last year passed a law that would force ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, to sell the app or face a ban in the US. Attorneys for the U.S. Department of Justice plan to argue that the measure is necessary for relief national security risks set by the application. TikTok will debate the law stifling freedom of speech of about 170 million Americans.
Here are some of the most pressing questions we're thinking about: How will the justices interpret the unusual request Trump made last month to delay the trial of the case until Is he in power? Will the court be convinced by DOJ's argument about how China can manipulate TikTok's algorithm to shape public opinion? How will the justices approach constitutional issues involving social media platforms that extend far beyond America's borders?
Additionally, do the questions the judges ask provide any clues about how they might ultimately rule in the case? We paid particular attention to Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who delivered the opinion in a previous case that foreign social media platforms do not enjoy the same First Amendment protections as US companies. If she raises the same point again, it could suggest that TikTok will lose her usually relatively moderate votes in cases involving free speech issues.