What is RedNote? The TikTok alternative that doesn't allow showing skin or LGBTQ+ content

What is RedNote?

RedNote is a short-form video platform that doubles as an e-commerce site, offering shopping and the ability to leave reviews on products. It is the alternative to TikTok in China, where it is known as Xiaohongshu, which translates to "little red book."

RedNote recently became the number one app in U.S. stores online ahead of the impending ban. Because the company is based in China, the platform could eventually be subject to a similar ban as TikTok's.

Related: V Spehar reflects on 4 years of Under the Desk News, the TikTok ban & tension with traditional media

What content is allowed on RedNote?

TikTok refugees have already noted harsh restrictions on RedNote that have resulted in their content being removed or their accounts being suspended, including for mentioning LGBTQ+ identities or for women, wearing a slightly low-cut top.

One TikTok user returned to the platform to share that she had been banned from RedNote after posting a selfie with "a tiny bit of cleavage," and a separate video mentioning "trans plight." A Black user asked for help online after her selfie was removed — all for wearing a shirt in the same tone as her skin.

Why is TikTok being banned?

The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard legal challenges to a law that requires ByteDance, TikTok’s China-based parent company, to sell the app or face a nationwide ban. Passed in Congress with bipartisan support and signed by President Joe Biden, the law requires ByteDance, TikTok’s China-based parent company, to sell the app or face a nationwide ban.

Unless the Supreme Court delays or overturns the ban, ByteDance has said it will start the process of shutting down TikTok’s U.S. operations on Jan. 19. Lawmakers have argued that the app poses national security risks because of its foreign ownership, despite the First Amendment concerns a ban creates.

Is TikTok really a national security threat?

While lawmakers have claimed they cannot release much of their evidence proving TikTok's threat to security due to it being classified, experts say that the app isn't any more invasive than other social media platforms. A 2021 study by the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab found that TikTok's data harvesting is nearly identical to that of Facebook or Instagram's, and an investigation into the app by the C.I.A. found no concrete evidence of Chinese authorities using users' data, according to The New York Times.

Can TikTok be used after the ban?

While TikTok could theoretically remain operational on personal devices that have already downloaded the app after it is removed from stores on Jan. 19, it will not be able to continue indefinitely without updates, which ByteDance will no longer be able to deploy. To prevent issues, TikTok has suggested that it will begin shutting down operations in the U.S. once the ban takes effect.