With the ban of TikTok in the U.S. lingering, it is important to reflect on the influence the app has had on the country’s social and political landscape. The social media platform boasts billions of users and encourages creativity, entertainment, and activism. While the platform acts as a “safe space” for all users, its algorithm-driven curation of content can have harmful effects on its users.
This algorithm is also responsible for the ease at which misinformation and harmful narratives and trends can spread. From the far-right political ideology and conspiracies of Alex Jones to far-left extremism and promotion of dangerous behaviors, TikTok’s algorithm will spread it all to the point where each gets truly out of control and leads to real world consequences.
One of the most notorious figures commonly associated with the spread of misinformation is Alex Jones, a conspiracy theorist known for his extreme rhetoric and fearmongering. Jones has been banned on almost all major social media platforms, including TikTok, but that has not stopped the rapid spread of his problematic ideology and theories such as the Sandy Hook massacre which Jones denied the validity of, saying the shooting was an “inside job” by the government.
Clips from Jones’ shows, interviews, and broadcasts are shared on TikTok by fan accounts and continue to circulate, spreading his harmful and extreme narratives.
Another issue includes the misinformation being spread concerning mental health. TikTok has provided its users a way to freely talk about mental health struggles. However, it has also fostered an environment where self-diagnosis and unhealthy coping mechanisms are promoted. Certain communities on TikTok glorify struggles like eating disorders, mental disabilities, and self-harm under the pretense of relatability and belonging to a community.
Beyond wellness and political misinformation, the app has become infamous for its viral trends that put its users at risk.
Some trends are extremely dangerous, leading to serious injuries and even death in some cases. These trends go beyond political ideology, which shows how misinformation not only affect politics but also social aspects of its users’ lives. One such trend, the “NyQuil Chicken” trend, had followers of the trend cooking chicken in NyQuil cough syrup.
This trend has had serious effects on TikTok’s users causing severe injury and harm. TikTok’s problem with misinformation spans across many aspects of its users’ lives, going beyond just politics.
The platform’s algorithm and structure create an echo chamber on both the far left and right while providing a free space for the encouragement of dangerous trends.
The rate at which harmful content can spread on the app is truly alarming and can only be addressed when people on both sides of the political spectrum work together to realize their own errors and work together to make a solution before more real-world consequences transpire.