> 2020 pandemonium about TikTok being a national security threat looks increasingly like a power play.. dire warnings, and even the threat to completely shut down its platform, subsided only after TikTok began appointing Western officials to important positions within its organization, thereby giving the state considerable influence over the content and direction of the app.
TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
51–60 of 208 posts
Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#52Earlier quoted context omitted.
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.
Jingoism. "Facebook may algorithmically subvert the foundations of society and democracy, but at least it's being done by a state I support."
Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
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.
Jingoism. "Facebook may algorithmically subvert the foundations of society and democracy, but at least it's being done by a state I support."
Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#54Earlier 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?
What TikTok does _really_ well is surface hyper specific content to you. I grew up the children of indian immigrants and there's a, let's say shared trauma, to growing up like that. It's a ton of little things that I just swallowed as a kid and now I realize: that's kinda messed up. Things like aunties always asking me what school I got into, am I dating, am I getting married, etc. They seem like innocent questions right now but as the eldest teen in the group, I wanted appreciation and felt like I was getting orders from these questions.
Yes it's a constrained format (though I think you can up to 90 seconds now) but you have to realize, it is near impossible to find this kind of content elsewhere. There's a whole generation of people who find communicating through short video clips more natural than how you and I are talking right now. And they're not afraid to challenge social norms that I had to accept; I can only salute that.
Does this represent all the type of content I engage with? No - the slot machine effect is very real here. For every impactful video I watch, there's maybe 10 dopamine hit videos I consume. I choose to make that trade off (with guard rails - I install TikTok every friday and delete it every Sunday).
Sample impactful video: https://www.tiktok.com/@anncytwinklee/video/7130719838778953...
Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#55Point: 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…
Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#56Reminder that Facebook paid a firm to create negative buzz around TikTok [0]. > The firm, Targeted Victory, pushed local operatives across the country to boost messages calling TikTok a threat to American children. “Dream would be to get stories with headlines like ‘From dances to danger,’ ” one campaign director said. > The campaign includes placing op-eds and letters to the editor in major regional news outlets, pr…
This is whataboutism, although I always do appreciate light being shown on Fb/meta.
Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#57Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#58Reminder that Facebook paid a firm to create negative buzz around TikTok [0]. > The firm, Targeted Victory, pushed local operatives across the country to boost messages calling TikTok a threat to American children. “Dream would be to get stories with headlines like ‘From dances to danger,’ ” one campaign director said. > The campaign includes placing op-eds and letters to the editor in major regional news outlets, pr…
Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#59Earlier 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.
It sounds like thats the end of content you tend to engage with to be honest. My tiktok tends to be filled with comedy, music, and people telling stories about their lives.
Re: TikTok is manipulative, addictive, and harmful to privacy
#60Point: 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…
Caffeine is not the reason Coca-Cola is bad.
One comment:
> I first noticed that half a coke zero results in a "colon cleansing" complete with cramps and loose bowels. Over the last 2 days, four other friends/family have experimented and come up with the same results. What is the ingredient that causes this?