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TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

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Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#21

Post by thisone »

fwxwi wrote: post #17
TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no such thing as a politics-free network, only one that only allows politics you agree with.

That is false. TikTok is a platform where people upload videos of themselves doing things like lip syncing, dancing, etc. That does not have to turn political at all. Unless you use the good ol' argument that "banning all political discussion is supporting the status quo which is also political"

ferrets seems to be having a good time on tiktok at the moment. So cute and so wholesome. Not political right?

Ferrets are a weirdly political issue in some areas of the USA.

It's pretty hard to have anything be politics free when the world we live in is political

Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#22

Post by navaati »

fwxwi wrote: post #7

TikTok is, as the title says, a social network for cheerfulness and fun. I don't use it, but I can understand they outright ban politics: 1) they avoid becoming the vile cesspool Twitter has become, 2) they avoid being asked by governments around the world to take down posts, 3) they avoid being targeted in propaganda campaigns.

In Ireland there is an implicit rule that at the pub you don’t talk politics or work, looks similar…

Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#23

Post by simion314 »

TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #14
oefrha wrote: post #13

I fail to see why every platform has to become a fucking idealogical battleground. If I’m in the market for a social network myself (HN notwithstanding) I’d probably choose a politics-free one if possible.

There is no such thing as a politics-free network, only one that only allows politics you agree with.

Why do you think so, I am thinking for example of some on topic subreddits like r/DaystromInstitute , any post that would try to go offtopic and politicise stuff will be removed. As a non US citizen it is a breath of fresh air not to have all topics devolve into republicans vs democrats.

IMO if you have rules that current politics is off topic and moderators that can enforce the rules, a community that respects the rules and polices them themselves you can get a clean , on topic, meme free forum.

Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#24

Post by TeMPOraL »

thisone wrote: post #21
fwxwi wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is false. TikTok is a platform where people upload videos of themselves doing things like lip syncing, dancing, etc. That does not have to turn political at all. Unless you use the good ol' argument that "banning all political discussion is supporting the status quo which is also political"

ferrets seems to be having a good time on tiktok at the moment. So cute and so wholesome. Not political right? Ferrets are a weirdly political issue in some areas of the USA. It's pretty hard to have anything be politics free when the world we live in is political

> Ferrets are a weirdly political issue in some areas of the USA.

They're not political except for a select group people who want to make it political. They should not be encouraged or appreciated for trying to push that outlook on others.

Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#25

Post by oefrha »

thisone wrote: post #21
fwxwi wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is false. TikTok is a platform where people upload videos of themselves doing things like lip syncing, dancing, etc. That does not have to turn political at all. Unless you use the good ol' argument that "banning all political discussion is supporting the status quo which is also political"

ferrets seems to be having a good time on tiktok at the moment. So cute and so wholesome. Not political right? Ferrets are a weirdly political issue in some areas of the USA. It's pretty hard to have anything be politics free when the world we live in is political

If you just post some ferrets being cute clips instead of a documentary on why ferrets should/should not be illegal, I’m sure everyone (except those looking to be offended) can have a good time.

Saying this is on the same level as protest videos or political commentary is absurd.

Now, I don’t deny that some people would try to make political statements with plausible deniability. However, if it’s not their intent and their one video gets shadow banned, who cares? If it is, well, they deserved it.

Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#26

Post by fzeroracer »

oefrha wrote: post #18
TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no such thing as a politics-free network, only one that only allows politics you agree with.

Not true. For instance it’s pretty easy to create a programming language forum that bans all off-topic content, including identity politics in programming, workplace politics, etc. Unless you believe in the bullshit that is the absence of X == automatically siding what whatever X considers its opponent (usually “the establishment” or “the status quo”) at that moment in time.

So let's say you have a forum that completely bans all off-topic discussion.

What happens when a prominent user experiences something negative? Like for example they die, or face harassment from people either inside or outside the community. Do you ban them for breaking the cardinal rule, or allow your forum to become political?

It's not at all easy to create a forum that bans all off topic discussion. I've ran smaller forums before. If you honestly think you can do better then by all means, give it a try. You'll quickly realize that your users are human, and you'll be forced to make decisions that are intrinsically political.

Thee is no such thing as a forum that can avoid political discussion. Just one that aligns with your beliefs.

Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#27

Post by Lewton »

fzeroracer wrote: post #26
oefrha wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not true. For instance it’s pretty easy to create a programming language forum that bans all off-topic content, including identity politics in programming, workplace politics, etc. Unless you believe in the bullshit that is the absence of X == automatically siding what whatever X considers its opponent (usually “the establishment” or “the status quo”) at that moment in time.

So let's say you have a forum that completely bans all off-topic discussion. What happens when a prominent user experiences something negative? Like for example they die, or face harassment from people either inside or outside the community. Do you ban them for breaking the cardinal rule, or allow your forum to become political? It's not at all easy to create a forum that bans all off topic discussion. I've ran small…

https://www.reddit.com/r/CatsStandingUp/

Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#29

Post by [deleted] »

pgeorgi wrote: post #12
spectramax wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not really. Try rallying up support against Xi Jingpin on TikTok?

Showing non-sexual images of breasts on facebook may or may not work out well: https://www.facebook.com/the.ban.on.breastfeeding/ The sensibilities are different but they exist.

[deleted]

Re: TikTok: Cheerfulness and censorship

#30

Post by TeMPOraL »

TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #14
oefrha wrote: post #13

I fail to see why every platform has to become a fucking idealogical battleground. If I’m in the market for a social network myself (HN notwithstanding) I’d probably choose a politics-free one if possible.

There is no such thing as a politics-free network, only one that only allows politics you agree with.

The "there's no such thing as apolitical, apolitical = supporting status quo" meme needs to die. It's just a slightly smarter-sounding variant of "if you're not with us, you're against us". It purposefully conflates two groups of people - people who don't engage with an issue because they like the status quo, and people who don't engage with an issue because (within reasonable bounds) they don't care which side wins. For any given issue, the latter group is usually the majority of the population - and conflating them with status quo supporters is just a malicious attempt at recruiting people for your cause.

Think of it this way: under this view, McDonald's is supporting the status quo on $whatever-issue, because it does not give out political pamphlets with Big Macs. Sitting in a toilet alone and thinking is supporting the status quo, because it does not enable others to voice their view. Etc.

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