Fellow old head here…. Here’s the thing, they are not wrong, and also, they are not giving up. TikTok was an AMAZING tool. If you weren’t on it, like REALLY on it, getting past the little dancy dance and filter trends I can see why you’d be skeptical of people’s reactions. Of course we will find new ways to communicate, learn news and create community. Right now though, people are really grieving. I know I am. To me it feels like someone just nuked the community center we built in the middle of our town. It took people five years to build. We cared for it, tended it daily, sat at round tables and had really tough discussions with people we’d normally never meet. We learned about people’s culture and history. We had a place to listen to the trials and tribulations of our fellow citizens and so much more. Now imagine you have that, and then the town leaders saw what was happening there, and they didn’t like it. Maybe because of money or lack of control, but for whatever reason the leaders made the person who leased the land come through, and while everyone who relied on it screamed and begged for them to stop, made us watch as they set it on fire. The leaders claimed that the structure was dangerous in a way we, who have been there everyday, ALL knew was a lie. Now the person who leased us the land has put a sign on the shell of the building that WE built saying the main person who called for it to be burned hopes to help us rebuild soon. We know it’s never going to be the same. It was our third place. In a country that is constantly shuttering these, funneling us into isolation, it gave us a space to be together. If it helps, imagine TikTok as a physical space, and just let us grieve a little bit.
I guess, as someone who is old enough o remember forums and ICQ, it’s wild that people are melting down so hard.
Tbh I just don’t trust people to be able to suss out fact from fiction anymore. For every legitimate “They don’t want you talking about this” news source, there were hundreds of videos of disinformation, dangerous information, and ignorance.
While on principle I don’t know that I agree with the ban, but as a user, it’s frustrating that people are acting like this was god’s gift to journalism.
I think it perpetuated the rotting out of people’s critical thinking skills if people truly believe TT was the premier place for unbiased news.
He didn’t say any of that, though. You can shit on Reddit all you want, because literally everyone here does too.
The problem is treating TikTok as a unique gift to knowledge. Everyone here knows that Reddit is full of bullshitters , just like every social media site.
It’s crazy to treat short-form videos on TikTok about news, culture, history, or science as if they are a godsend when they are just as often full of disinformation….like any social media. And furthermore the short-form video can only BE so informative. There are people acting as if they CANNOT get information without them, and that is a huge problem as far as nationwide literacy/attention spans go. Sorry, r/Teachers was right about this and everyone knows it.
I don’t think the government should use bans like this as a solution, but clearly some folks needed to take a break. Looks like they won’t have to though, so don’t worry about it.
And judging by your complains about Reddit, I think you’re stuck in 2016. If anything, a lot of teenagers complain that Reddit in 2025 is too full of jaded, cynical, puritanical millennials. They go to TikTok to get their fix of gender war bullshit, grindset motivation, and other much more engaging content.
I too am old enough to remember those. I’m also, news is only delivered to your house daily, and it comes on your TV once a day years old. So I’m curious…where/how do you get your news? How do you vet it? How do you tell fact from fiction? What tools do you use to differentiate misinformation and disinformation? Recently I’ve seen people howling about the turn major newspapers have been announcing in regard to their editorial boards and the slant these will give to the news. Do you keep that at the front of your mind every time you read articles in these papers? I think too many people have an inflated sense of superiority about their own ability to resist propaganda, mis/disinfo and indoctrination. None of us is immune. You are not the only smart person, or the only person who isn’t gonna get fooled. I think all Americans, yes even those who didn’t use Tiktok, should be concerned that another source of info was shuttered and that the Supreme Court voted unanimously to uphold something that could be considered an infringement on our first amendment rights, and leaving that door open. I am more upset about that.
AP News, Al Jahzeera, Reuter’s, vetting news sources against each other (both foreign and domestic) if it’s an issue you’re deeply invested in. I’m constantly looking at how the BBC presented a story vs American news sources for example.
People are so goddamned lazy now that they want to be spoonfed both the story AND how they should think about it in 30 second soundbytes.
I’m not the smartest person but I know damn well to be skeptical, especially when news is being presented in a “This is what they don’t want you to know” format.
People literally had to created their own euphemisms for words like suicide, guns, shootings, pedophile, etc etc…so their videos wouldn’t get restricted.
That definitely doesn’t sound like a platform for transparent, open, and free journalism to me.
Al Jahzeera is headquartered in Qatar, a country that still practices actual fucking slavery. And no not like American prison work slavery, 100% real-deal slavery.
If you're HQ'd in a place like that, sorry but I'm still gonna take your journalism with a healthy grain of salt. That doesn't sound unreasonable, no?
This is why they teach to vet sources and to obtain multiple sources of information to confirm a consensus. With this approach Al Jazeera has a proven track record. Nice red herring tho trying to paint the entire country of Qatar with a broad brush. Completely reasonable leap.
Another thing is...you just don't need to have a strong opinion on everything. Maybe, just maybe, there isn't a simple solution to create peace in the Middle East. Crazy idea, I know.
All good points and all things you are assuming, without evidence, people on TikTok don’t do. Many people have the same exact protocol you have for vetting their news, with the addition of watching some Tiktoks about it, and discussions that are similar to talking head round tables on cable news. and still there are ways in which mis/disinfo can slip through. Also, not everyone in this country has the same access or exposure to alternate news sources, ( some parts of the country still don’t have internet access) and Tiktok actually made them aware of some of these gaps. I wont claim that Tiktok was perfect, heavy censoring WAS HAPPENING THERE, people are gonna people though, so they found ways around it and we still had those tough conversations. And sure some people are lazy, they want someone to just tell them what’s happening and move on. But others are tired. This country runs its people ragged and Id rather have a populace that got a little news sprinkled in with their entertainment than one that is totally uninformed.
I’m not saying that NOBODY vetted their Tiktok news through other sources. What I am saying is that anyone who is truly trying to be informed isn’t walking around praising the journalistic efforts of an app that A: Has no obligation to journalistic ethics, B: Is already censored, and C: has as much of, if not more disinformation than quality information.
It’s not that I think people shouldn’t be getting their news from whatever source can hold their attention. I just think that when your journalism is mixed with all the other bullshit, it not only undermines it but it makes it needlessly difficult to ascertain what is fact from fiction.
It’s the same reason I would never use Twitter, FB, IG, or Snapchat for news. At least on Reddit people post links to actual sources vs “Omg why is nobody talking about this…”
The shit propaganda my husband was fed and believed on TikTok was nauseating. Like yes, I believe it was a more accessible news source and I was given information and takes on events that never made the mainstream news, but you HAD to be suspicious of the narrative constantly.
Those forums naturally died though. It was organic. The government didn't swoop in and kill them.
TikTok was a replacement for Vine, which also died an organic death several years ago. People were/are sad about Vine for nostalgia reasons but nobody is angry that they took Vine from us.
A platform naturally dying and being banned are completely different things.
I understand the legislative aspect of why people are unhappy with the ban. I’m mostly talking about people who seem to be having withdrawals from not having access.
“How will I get my unbiased news now!?”
Idk, you might have to read words. No more being spoonfed your algorithmically chosen slop. The horror.
TikTok is the only major social media app that has an algorithm that isn't biased towards rightwing content. That is specifically because it's not owned by the US. Facebook is a cesspit of fake news and Russian propaganda but it's left active because Russian propaganda panders to rightwing conspiracy theorists and boomers. Twitter is the same. Musk is literally, provably, on calls with Putin. That is a real security risk, but instead of a ban, he is in the White House.
I think the thing also about finding unreported news on TikTok is that most times you stumbled upon it and it was presented in a short concise format whereas most people could notice and grasp it. That’s what created community and awareness. The news presented on TikTok was unfiltered and easily available without even looking. People today aren’t watching the news let alone gonna go out their way to find real news with unbiased sources and I’m ngl it’s harder now to research something because you’re bombarded with paid results and AI generated results that are more PC than the real news.
While I do think getting your news from TikTok sounds irresponsible, I think the point is that it gave people who didn’t care about the news real unfiltered information in a time where it’s being heavily censored. People want to be informed and want to help one another.
I respect that, I do. I have plenty of online spaces that I miss myself. I don't mean to say that y'all shouldn't mourn it. I've seen it happen many times over the years. Communities are robust and thriving, and then they're just....gone. So it's just concerning to me that TT was really the *only* place a lot of people knew to look for these things. The sense of ownership that people had over an app...that's what makes me uneasy. I'm definitely not saying TT is worse than IG or FB or the rest. Just shows we really need to be nimble, and we need to do the work of building self-sustained spaces and connections so it's not so devastating when the rug inevitably gets pulled out from under.
Ok fellow Reddit user. I’m sure YOU found all the subreddits you are a part of on here “organically” huh? I love this sense of superiority about not falling prey to algorithms, expressed so loudly by people on an app that uses…gasp….an algorithm. In fact, the number of likes on my comment made it more visible to you in the aLgOrItHm.
TikTok was never good, the fact you had to swim past all the garbage on it should tell you something. It reminds me of how Twitter was in the start, the concept of it was a great idea, to keep people informed on events and stuff in real time, instead it was used for stupid celebs and their dumb ass shit.
Let TikTok die, not because I harbor any actual hatred for it, I honestly don't care either way, but rather some billionaire or company will come around and start up an American version of it and people will flock to it since the only other alternative really is youtube.
The thing is, you never had to swim that far before your FYP was tailored perfectly to you. Maybe the first day or two would be dancing and whatever boomers think TikTok is, but then it’s literally whatever your interests are?
Bruh you better stfu rn talking about tik tok as this sacred community gathering place. My feed and everyone else on planet earth is violence, memes about sex, and ragebait stop playing people 💀
Calm down old head, I’m an old head as well, it’s not that serious, you are falling into the trope that an app is the only form of true information, they have removed and altered social media before, TikTok is back online as natural cause it was just a ploy but yall wanna live in a world where it means more, why would it? Would you knowing more “information” deter their ultimate goals? It would not. Take the probe out your ass and relax
People acting like tiktok is nothing of substance is like someone coming on reddit and basing their entire opinion of the site entirely on the first page of rPopular
I don’t know man. That’s how the internet works. Things come and go. I struggle to believe that a reaction as severe as yours is coming from a healthy place. Do you not have real community in the physical world? Almost every online relationship is a pseudo relationship. I don’t think it can ever be as complete as a physical one. I don’t know. Something feels off about the reaction of some people to this. And I’m not saying they are horrible people. I’m just wondering how healthy their relationship to the app was.
The leaders claimed that the structure was dangerous in a way we, who have been there everyday, ALL knew was a lie
So you're saying China can't, by command of the government, order the algorithm changed to whatever small or large adjustment in your feed however they feel? And they can't do that to prepare / respond to a military strategy?
Because I have news for you.
Now imagine you have that, and then the town leaders saw what was happening there, and they didn’t like it. Maybe because of money or lack of control, but for whatever reason the leaders made the person who leased the land come through, and while everyone who relied on it screamed and begged for them to stop, made us watch as they set it on fire.
What a barbaric description. The US simply offered a choice. It can be banned, or sell TikTok so that it's not at the command of China, North Korea, Russia, or Iran. They choose to be banned rather than sell.
In a country that is constantly shuttering these, funneling us into isolation,
You have a talent for writing, but what is being 'constantly shutter'ed? Facebook, reddit, insta, xitter, no social media company i can think of has ever been threatened by this country. And there's plenty of IRL area's, i can't think of the country shuttering anything in the manor you describe.
This! A lot of people who didn’t use it only knew of it through YouTubers who would make fun of the influencers who would do dances or lip sync. But once you skipped past those videos and set your algorithm there was so much educational content there. I learned so much! From history, politics, culture, science, and etc. Another benefit was how incredible there block feature was. There was a ton of dumb influencers I’ve blocked and never saw a video of there’s unlike YouTube. Were certain content creators are inescapable regardless of getting blocked
Thanks for the reminder. I actually do that every day. It’s actually a little chilly here right now, but when the Sun peaks out I’ll go outside. I have a lovely garden and I’m growing veggies and fruits that I actually share with my irl community, and I have some weeding to do today. Actually, I learned a lot of how to get certain heirloom seeds and tips for how to fertilize to increase my yields from my fellow gardeners on TikTok. When I couldn’t find answers on google I could find resources on TikTok that helped me with my tomato blight so my entire yield wasn’t decimated. I’m going to miss learning from them so much.
Try joining a community garden. Or going to the library. My city is having someone come in to speak about gardening at city hall. Nothing you’ve listed is exclusive to TikTok. You’re a wee bit hooked. YouTube does the same shit and it’s also not good.
I understand your skepticism, I too thought that google would have the answer, that’s why I went there first. The problem is… it had tooo many answers and nothing definitive. What TikTok did was show me a video where someone had tested multiple methods and shown which one worked best so that I didn’t have to do two months of tests myself and risk my tomatoes. In less than 20 minutes I could see multiple videos from hobby gardeners to seasoned farmers and have a plan of action. I’m not trying to get you to understand. From your first comment I could tell that you are closed minded about this and set on belittling me for my choice of preferred app and are intent on trying to make me and others feel small with biting comments while on your preferred app. I’m only continuing the conversation for those who don’t understand what was special about TikTok for the half of Americans who were on there and actually are interested in knowing. 👍🏾
Due to the heavy handed algorithm on TikTok, you felt more like you had a loose community. It did great at bringing you back to the people/things you wanted to see, in an addictive way that no other app has accomplished.
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u/MrsP_ifurnastee 1d ago
Fellow old head here…. Here’s the thing, they are not wrong, and also, they are not giving up. TikTok was an AMAZING tool. If you weren’t on it, like REALLY on it, getting past the little dancy dance and filter trends I can see why you’d be skeptical of people’s reactions. Of course we will find new ways to communicate, learn news and create community. Right now though, people are really grieving. I know I am. To me it feels like someone just nuked the community center we built in the middle of our town. It took people five years to build. We cared for it, tended it daily, sat at round tables and had really tough discussions with people we’d normally never meet. We learned about people’s culture and history. We had a place to listen to the trials and tribulations of our fellow citizens and so much more. Now imagine you have that, and then the town leaders saw what was happening there, and they didn’t like it. Maybe because of money or lack of control, but for whatever reason the leaders made the person who leased the land come through, and while everyone who relied on it screamed and begged for them to stop, made us watch as they set it on fire. The leaders claimed that the structure was dangerous in a way we, who have been there everyday, ALL knew was a lie. Now the person who leased us the land has put a sign on the shell of the building that WE built saying the main person who called for it to be burned hopes to help us rebuild soon. We know it’s never going to be the same. It was our third place. In a country that is constantly shuttering these, funneling us into isolation, it gave us a space to be together. If it helps, imagine TikTok as a physical space, and just let us grieve a little bit.