More Americans are getting news on TikTok, bucking the trend seen on most other social media sites::In just three years, the share of U.S. adults who say they regularly get news from TikTok has more than quadrupled, from 3% in 2020 to 14% in 2023.
As an out of touch old fart I have to ask:
What is there to see on TikTok besides meme-y short videos?
12-25 year-olds spreading misinformation confidently.
I can’t tell if this information is true or not, but I’m going to believe it because it fits my preconceptions about tiktok.
How does that differ from Twitter 5 years ago or Facebook 10 years ago?
We were 5 and 10 years younger, respectively.
Although, I think also the platforms have probably become more refined at providing a more attention capturing experience.
Being social media, the bar for entry is practically non existent. So yeah, there are 12-25 year olds spreading misinformation. But also, being social media, there are plenty of very intelligent and honest people who provide real news with sources. The problem isn’t really tiktok specifically, just a lack of media literacy and social media
Whatever form of entertainment you want to see. TikTok algorithm quickly adjust the algorithm to show you what you like or don’t skip instantly, and it’s very good at it.
The problem is it’s all superficial content that will vanish from your mind 3s later, so 2h scrolling on TikTok or Reels feel like 2 blank hours from your day. Besides, since the algorithm decides what you’ll see, it’s like your brain shuts down similarly to what happens when you’re vegetating in front of TV watching whatever crap they’re throwing at you.
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So it only has short form videos in tall format? Like FB reels or YT shorts?
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I follow some lawyers who do near realtime analysis of the trump cases.
Okay. I read he article and read (some of) the source, but I still have to ask: What is “News” in this context?
Leading me to think about what even “News” is, and in particular what is “News” to the people who answered this, and does that kind of opinion on “News” disqualify them from having an opinion on “News” in the general sense?
I mean, I haven’t actually looked it up, but presumably “news” is information brought to you by a reputable source, so you have some confidence in its accuracy.
The concerning part for me is there’s no way tik tok is regulated, or held to any kind of standard. I’m not sure if sources are regularly cited, or confirmed. It feels like gen z / alpha just taking everything at face value, even blatant propaganda, and assuming it as truth because “nobody would just go on the internet and lie”
So I am ashamed to say I use tiktok more than I had intended when downloading the app. The alogirthy is really good, and if that stuff isn’t your cup of tea you will literally have to create a new sub account to dig yourself out of the algorithm trench your in.
But with all that being said, Tiktok is a good source for finding loose threads to pull on. Some rando will go off on some new thing, maybe a part of an obscure world news event, your congress critter doing something fucky the other day that national news ignored, etc. You cannot take these videos as truth, but they certainly give you everything you need to know to Google and find the reputable sources yourself.
This is the actual reason I think the US wants to ban tiktok. Government corruption is highlighted with a floodlight and passed around to anyone interested in almost real time. It’s crazy what I see on tiktok, that eventually becomes AP news or a post on Lemmy or both.
