tiktok - The Patriot Talon

Meet the Tyler Social Media Influencer with More than 250K Followers

May 20, 2025 The Patriot Talon

Video by JUDE RATCLIFF/Multimedia Contributor A few years ago, Makala Johnson of Tyler was diagnosed with a rare chronic illness. As she began her long recovery, she started making social media posts. Her honesty and [Read More…]

I Will Not Be Re-Downloading TikTok

January 31, 2025 Larry Bonilla

By LARRY BONILLA/Copy Editor The TikTok app was unavailable the late evening of Jan. 18. This was only a few hours before the nationwide ban on Jan. 19, yet the app was down early. For [Read More…]

Students Are Tangled in Web of Social Media

November 21, 2024 The Patriot Talon

By NATALIE HERNANDEZ/Contributor Social media has become a significant part of daily life for many people. TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat capture the attention of millions. Kira Hinton, 19-year-old communication student, finds herself constantly drawn to [Read More…]

House Passes Bill for Potential Nationwide TikTok Ban

April 8, 2024 Whitney

By WHITNEY WORLEY/Staff Contributor UT Tyler student Makayla Villarreal’s TikTok page seems to know her well. It offers her penguins falling down a slide, people doing backflips and college lifestyle narratives. There’s also the curling [Read More…]

UT Tyler bans TikTok on campus Wi-Fi

January 26, 2023 Paulina Mata

By PAULINA MATA/Staff Writer, ANDREW VELARDE/Staff Writer As of Jan. 17, students no longer can use TikTok with campus Wi-Fi due to Gov. Greg Abbott’s recent directive. TikTok is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance [Read More…]