January 27, 2026
Glitch or gag? The feed is on fire
TikTok users can't upload anti-ICE videos. The company blames tech issues
Is TikTok glitching—or gagging? Users cry foul, TikTok blames a blackout
TLDR: TikTok blames a power outage for stalled uploads as anti‑ICE posts sputter, but commenters suspect censorship and point to rumors about banned words. With new US ownership and Oracle ties, trust is frayed, turning a tech glitch into a political drama about who gets to speak and be heard.
TikTok says a US data center power outage is behind weekend upload woes, but the comment section isn’t buying it. After comedian Megan Stalter’s anti–ICE (US immigration police) video died on TikTok but popped on Instagram, the community lit up with accusations, eye rolls, and spicy memes. One camp is yelling “censorship!”; another shrugs: “just a glitch.” Senator Chris Murphy even called it a “threat to democracy,” turning the volume to 11. Meanwhile, TikTok’s new US-only setup—with Oracle involved and ties to Trump—has trust issues baked in, and that’s giving every hiccup a political flavor.
On CNN’s report, commenters went full detective. mark_l_watson claims the forced US sale is about keeping info from Americans, while mschuster91 points to chatter that TikTok DMs won’t even let you type “Epstein.” Cue memes about the app quietly “Orbanizing” (Hungary-style media takeover) itself. On the flip side, Havoc drops a one-liner: “Definitely not censorship.” Others, like nomilk, plead for all sides to stop deplatforming and let the arguments happen in the open.
Humor flew fast: jokes about “ICE freezing uploads,” “Epstein autocorrect,” and “Oracle’s off switch.” TikTok insists uploads are just slower and unrelated to the ICE news, but the vibe is pure trust meltdown—even tech glitches feel political when your For You page won’t let you speak.
Key Points
- •Users reported difficulty uploading anti-ICE content to TikTok; Megan Stalter said her video could not be posted and she deleted her account.
- •TikTok attributed upload and recommendation delays to a power outage at a US data center and said issues were unrelated to recent ownership changes.
- •By Tuesday, TikTok reported significant progress restoring service, though some users may still face upload problems.
- •A majority American-owned joint venture took control of TikTok’s US assets under a 2024 law; Oracle is an investor and will store US users’ data in a secure US cloud.
- •The new US joint venture has decision-making authority over trust and safety and content moderation; Casey Fiesler noted user skepticism and misinformation about terms of service.