What is red note? TikTok ban prompts Americans to turn to Chinese app: NPR

Ahead of TikTok's possible shutdown in the U.S., Chinese social media app Xiaohongshu (known as RedNote in English) has attracted dozens of Americans

Andy Huang/AP

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Andy Huang/AP

As time approaches for a possible ban on TikTok in the United States, many Americans are flocking to a surprising alternative: a popular Chinese social media platform called Xiaohongshu (RedNote in English).

The Supreme Court seems unlikely to block a law that would require TikTok to either spin off from its Chinese parent ByteDance or be shut down in the United States on January 19. The law stems from concerns about the Chinese government's access to Americans' data.

That gives the viral video app 170 million users in the United States, many of whom are looking elsewhere. RedNote seems to be the platform of choice.

Earlier this week, Google searches and social media posts about RedNote surged, and it shot to the top of the Apple App Store's “Free Apps” rankings. Market intelligence firm Sensor Tower told NPR that its data showed RedNote was also the top-ranked social app in the Google Play Store on Wednesday, a significant jump from No. 162 this time last year.

A person close to RedNote told Reuters that more than 700,000 new users had joined in just two days. this new york times According to reports, more than 100,000 people joined a live group chat hosted by a user named TikTok Refugee Club on Tuesday.

Many new U.S. users are calling themselves “TikTok refugees,” a term widely circulated in the app’s hashtags, comments sections and live chats. Chinese users of the app seemed to welcome them with open arms, asking for photos of cats and help with their English homework.

While RedNote, like all social media apps in China, is subject to government censorship, many users welcome the opportunity for cross-cultural exchange, especially given the tensions between the U.S. and Chinese governments and the presence of major platforms like Google and Facebook in China blocked.

“For a long time, we really couldn't contact or talk to each other like this, but now we finally can, it feels special,” a Chinese user who identified himself as Abe said in a now-viral post. “This is a real opportunity for us to get to know each other and maybe create something amazing together… Not only are you welcome here, I really, really want you to stay.”

This lifestyle app is China’s version of Instagram, and it’s popular with women

The Chinese version of TikTok is the Douyin platform owned by ByteDance.

RedNote is a completely different application. It's considered China's version of Instagram, with a Pinterest-like layout (showing multiple posts at the same time) and a focus on travel, makeup, fashion, and shopping.

Users can post short videos, engage in live chat, call each other, and even purchase products within the app.

Launched in 2013, it was originally called “Hong Kong Shopping Guide” and, according to Reuters, targeted Chinese tourists looking for local recommendations.

It grew steadily over the years and took the name “Xiaohongshu”, which means “little red book”. The phrase traditionally refers to a collection of quotations from Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong.

RedNote has thrived among younger consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic and is now valued at $17 billion. The company currently has 300 million monthly active users, 79% of whom are women, according to TechCrunch.

According to Sensor Tower, the app has exploded in popularity among U.S. audiences since last week.

The report said that in the seven days starting January 8, U.S. mobile downloads of the app increased more than 20 times from the previous week and more than 30 times compared with the same period last year.

More than a fifth of total RedNote app downloads so far this month have come from the United States, compared with just 2% during the same period in 2024, the company said.

US users overcome language barriers and censorship

New U.S. users of RedNote are confronting potentially taboo topics like privacy and censorship. Users from both countries joked about finally meeting their “Chinese spies” and being willing to hand over data (including the aforementioned “cat tax”).

this new york times In one group chat this week that was reportedly viewed more than 30,000 times, “participants discussed censorship and shared tips in the comments on how to avoid being banned from the platform for raising politically sensitive topics.”

“Welcome, but don't say anything about LGBTQ+. Thank you!” wrote a Beijing user, in one reported example newsweek. this promote Some U.S. users have had their content removed or their accounts suspended, including one woman who was banned for wearing a low-cut top in one video and mentioning the “transgender plight” in another, the report said.

In 2022, China Digital Times, a California-based nonprofit that reports on censorship in China, published a series of leaked documents showing how RedNote's content moderation team banned or restricted posts about sensitive topics.

It included some 546 derogatory epithets for Chinese leader Xi Jinping, as well as discussions of strikes, regional discrimination, student suicides and criticism of the Chinese Communist Party.

Plus, since much of the app's content is in Mandarin, subtitles have suddenly become rampant — as have posts from Americans who want to learn the language, including exchanging translations of popular slang phrases with Chinese commenters.

The irony of Americans leaving TikTok in favor of another Chinese-run app is not lost on many users, with some seeing the move as a defiance of U.S. lawmakers' efforts to ban the app.

“Has the U.S. government forgotten our founding principles? We are a country built on resentment,” user @thesleepydm, who has more than 200,000 followers on TikTok, posted on TikTok. “We now provide information directly to the Chinese government. The Communists only have direct access to our information because of … what you did.”