TikTok is by far the most popular platform for posting youth-focused content online. This entertainment social network has eschewed political issues for a long time.
However, this popular platform faced a problem at the end of 2019: what to do with the huge flow of political videos? The upcoming US presidential election has increased the popularity of such content.
TikTok management and staff came up with a strategy for identifying inappropriate content. The algorithm was supposed to automatically detect the Republican symbols of MAGA (Make America Great Again) in the videos. However, this system for identifying inappropriate content could mistakenly “ban” videos not related to politics.
As a result, the social platform abandoned the introduction of extreme measures – the rejection of the recommendations was not approved by the management.
Political discussions on TikTok reached their zenith in the summer of 2020, and videos with hashtags #election2020 and #2020election counted 3.5 bln views.
June last year was fatal for TikTok. A program was launched on the social platform to disrupt a rally in support of Donald Trump in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Young people participating in this disruption program began to register for the event en masse (registration meant getting a free ticket to the rally). As a result, the rally was disrupted due to the low attendance of the “electorate”.
Corporate intrigues at TikTok have not subsided since June 2020:
- Trump signed a decree on the quick sale of American assets of TikTok in early August;
- the former president has threatened to completely outlaw the app in the US;
- company CEO Kevin Mayer resigned at the end of August 2020.
To date, the differences of opinion have not been fully resolved. Shou Zi Chew, a citizen of Singapore, took over as CEO of the company in April 2021.