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TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

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Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#31

Post by GekkePrutser »

skulk wrote: post #11
okasaki wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I always have a laugh when people say TikTok has x-type content. The truth is it has that type of content _for you_. Because it's what you engaged with. TikTok has lots of great content, but some people really don't like what they see in the mirror.

It's hard to believe anything of real value can be communicated in such a constrained format, but would you care to share any tiktoks that are actually worth risking a hugely time-wasting addiction for?

> It's hard to believe anything of real value can be communicated in such a constrained format

This is exactly what I've always hated about Twitter. Its length-limited posts actively stimulate stupid crap like people posting what they had for dinner and make real insightful content very hard to read because people have to split it up in 20 different parts which all become their own threads with distracting replies.

Even the sane people I followed posted so much nonsense I had to wade through to find the one pearl that it was just not worth it. If something good comes up it'll make it to HN anyway so I just left Twitter.

I really don't get why Twitter is so popular either but I guess like with TikTok most people like shallow content. See what's popular on TV too, it's the "reality"/celeb crap.

Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#32

Post by daqnal »

badRNG wrote: post #14
sfvegandude wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No it does not apply just as well to almost any social media. TikTok is unique in its control of the user experience, its use of data, and its popularity. Best not to throw this on the pile of “well duh, it’s social media — of course it’s bad.” TikTok is spyware. TikTok is an adversary. TikTok must be regulated. Let’s talk about TikTok in this comments section, and not zoom out like we so often do.

> TikTok is spyware. TikTok is an adversary. In what unique ways is TikTok compromising privacy that Facebook isn't that warrants the labels of "spyware" and being "the adversary?"

Its legislation. More transparent governments like the US' are generally trusted with data over closed governments, at least, for the majority of Westerners.

Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#33

Post by kareemsabri »

okasaki wrote: post #8
nightski wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you used TikTok? I have and uninstalled it after a while. It feels like it takes all the bad elements of social media to the extreme. It's highly addictive, more so than other social networks, contains extremely shallow content, and can be very manipulative. I agree all social media can exhibit these traits to a degree, but TikTok at least for me really took it to the extreme.

I always have a laugh when people say TikTok has x-type content. The truth is it has that type of content _for you_. Because it's what you engaged with. TikTok has lots of great content, but some people really don't like what they see in the mirror.

Then you're either being willfully naive or don't understand how media works. Marshall McLuhan described this phenomenon 60 years ago, the medium is the message.

Can I settle in on Tik Tok and spend an hour gaining a deep understanding of the history of the Israel-Palestine conflict?

Note that I don't much care about Tik Tok fear mongering, but pretending the platform doesn't shape the type of content on it is absurd. Why is Instagram different than Tik Tok different than Twitter different than HN?

Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#35

Post by boredtofears »

bradleybuda wrote: post #26

As far as I can tell, TikTok scares like these are 30% standard social media moral panic, 70% jingoism. Everyone knows that they are paying for TikTok with their data and a few hundred million people (myself included) are okay with that calculus and making a rational, informed decision to continue using the product.

Do you think children whom have social media thrusted upon them by their peer groups are capable of making rational, informed decisions?

Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#36

Post by p1necone »

Quikinterp wrote: post #27
UIUC_06 wrote: post #24

Point: Tobacco is especially bad for young children. Therefore we must restrict it for children. Counterpoint: Caffeine is bad, too. Therefore, should we also outlaw Coca-Cola for children? The argument that "TikTok is no worse than other social media" is the Counterpoint. TikTok is very bad for children and adolescents, and we should do the difficult-but-honorable thing and prevent them from using it. If that's diff…

I don't want to sound pedantic or smug, but I think maybe coca-cola should be banned for children too. Perhaps not illegal but just not for sale for children. I think social media should be similar. 16+ at least

It's not in law, but some supermarkets in New Zealand age restrict energy drinks to 16+.

On the one hand it strikes me as being kind of silly, because those same kids could buy a coffee/iced coffee with just as much sugar and often even more caffeine in it just fine.

On the other hand I do see how the differing marketing/pricing on each product means you can't treat them as equivalent. Probably a good case for voluntary age restrictions by retailers rather than actual laws.

Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#37

Post by woevdbz »

t-writescode wrote: post #10
sfvegandude wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No it does not apply just as well to almost any social media. TikTok is unique in its control of the user experience, its use of data, and its popularity. Best not to throw this on the pile of “well duh, it’s social media — of course it’s bad.” TikTok is spyware. TikTok is an adversary. TikTok must be regulated. Let’s talk about TikTok in this comments section, and not zoom out like we so often do.

TikTok is no more spyware than any other major internet ad platform, it just happens to use the knowledge it gains to provide you with content you actually want to watch (even if you don't know you do). Google and Facebook collect the same sorts of information, they just don't use it as much to curate your experience. Edit: to the downvoters, do you really think that Google and Facebook don't scan images you upload t…

Do you really think it's how ad networks figure out someone's marketable interests? Based on their draft email/chat messages? You obviously haven't tried doing something like this, but getting solid inferences from such tangential data is very hard, and it's not really a priority when the same users leave such a large trail from their browsing and searching anyways, visiting countless websites with promiscuous audience reporting, ad tracking cookies, etc. Why would someone bother to track someone's draft emails to figure out their political affiliation when the media they consume provides all the signal.

Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#38

Post by suggestion »

bradleybuda wrote: post #26

As far as I can tell, TikTok scares like these are 30% standard social media moral panic, 70% jingoism. Everyone knows that they are paying for TikTok with their data and a few hundred million people (myself included) are okay with that calculus and making a rational, informed decision to continue using the product.

You're not paying with your data, you're paying with the foundations of functioning society and democracy that are being algorithmically subverted by a totalitarian slave state. The very things that trend on TikTok in the West are banned and filtered in China for a reason.

Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#39

Post by Nicksil »

bradleybuda wrote: post #26

As far as I can tell, TikTok scares like these are 30% standard social media moral panic, 70% jingoism. Everyone knows that they are paying for TikTok with their data and a few hundred million people (myself included) are okay with that calculus and making a rational, informed decision to continue using the product.

>As far as I can tell, TikTok scares like these are 30% standard social media moral panic, 70% jingoism. Everyone knows that they are paying for TikTok with their data and a few hundred million people (myself included) are okay with that calculus and making a rational, informed decision to continue using the product.

This is just silly.

The overwhelming majority of people have no idea of what any of that means thus have not made any such calculus.

Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy

#40

Post by _zllx »

watwut wrote: post #23

There is more complaining about kids making tiktok videos then there was about them making super offensive memes on 4chan.

4chan has nowhere near the influence over children that TikTok does. Maybe a /pol/ thread gets 500 replies or something, while Cobra Tate (a sex trafficker who went viral by openly hating women) gets 100M+ views by literal children on TikTok who go on to repeat everything he says.
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