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The collective obsession with TikTok is very strange and cult-like. This event has nothing to do with TikTok. Hand signals are not new and any medium of commun

by branon 5y ago

The collective obsession with TikTok is very strange and cult-like. This event has nothing to do with TikTok. Hand signals are not new and any medium of communication can be used to propagate their meaning. TikTok is certainly not the only medium by which this particular hand signal has propagated, and might not be the most significant force behind its adoption. Why was TikTok mentioned so many times? Just to draw clicks on the headline?

scollet 5y ago
It's a popular medium among that demographic. Seems like a win to me.
pm90 5y ago
TikTok helped popularize the sign.
hugs 5y ago
TikTok is going through its "honeymoon" period of positive press coverage. ("TikTok saves lives!") Glowing coverage of Google and Apple was like this in the early 2000s. Give it 10 years or so when the pendulum will swing the other way, and you'll be wondering why all the coverage of TikTok is so negative.
- NoPicklez 5y ago
  It wasnt that long ago that almost all press coverage of TikTok was negative. As it was pointing to China using it to "hack" our mobile phones and steal our data through the intrusive permissions it supposedly uses. Given that the press didn't do much to sway people's opinions its now being reported on based on the content it provides rather than the platform itself.
burkaman 5y ago
It is mentioned because it was in the police report: https://www.facebook.com/laurelcountysheriff/posts/256143486545841 https://www.facebook.com/laurelcountysheriff/posts/256143486... Can't say for sure, but I'm guessing the police included that because either the 911 caller or victim (or both) said they learned the gesture from TikTok.
boublepop 5y ago
> and might not be the most significant force behind its adoption. You say that, but if you where using tiktok you’d be one of the roughly billion people who didn’t know about the signal a month ago but then recently learned about it. Trust me, Tiktok was the absolutely major force behind this knowledge becoming widespread, and it’s perfectly reasonable that it’s mentioned. Just like Gangnam style coverage mentioned YouTube. It’s not about clicks or some infatuation with the platforms, it’s just objectively the case that these major platforms have an extreme reach and that’s worth including in your coverage. Especially since many readers like yourself don’t understand just how influential the platform has become, because they haven’t known about it for more than a year or so.
BiteCode_dev 5y ago
It's also trending on imgur. Since it's not the same user base as HN, and they usually don't trend on the same things at all, I always assume it's a PR compaign when it happens. So my theory is tik tok is paying some company for that buzz.

by branon 5y ago

scollet 5y ago

It's a popular medium among that demographic. Seems like a win to me.

pm90 5y ago

TikTok helped popularize the sign.

hugs 5y ago

TikTok is going through its "honeymoon" period of positive press coverage. ("TikTok saves lives!") Glowing coverage of Google and Apple was like this in the early 2000s. Give it 10 years or so when the pendulum will swing the other way, and you'll be wondering why all the coverage of TikTok is so negative.

NoPicklez 5y ago
It wasnt that long ago that almost all press coverage of TikTok was negative. As it was pointing to China using it to "hack" our mobile phones and steal our data through the intrusive permissions it supposedly uses. Given that the press didn't do much to sway people's opinions its now being reported on based on the content it provides rather than the platform itself.

burkaman 5y ago

It is mentioned because it was in the police report: https://www.facebook.com/laurelcountysheriff/posts/256143486545841 https://www.facebook.com/laurelcountysheriff/posts/256143486... Can't say for sure, but I'm guessing the police included that because either the 911 caller or victim (or both) said they learned the gesture from TikTok.

boublepop 5y ago

> and might not be the most significant force behind its adoption. You say that, but if you where using tiktok you’d be one of the roughly billion people who didn’t know about the signal a month ago but then recently learned about it. Trust me, Tiktok was the absolutely major force behind this knowledge becoming widespread, and it’s perfectly reasonable that it’s mentioned. Just like Gangnam style coverage mentioned YouTube. It’s not about clicks or some infatuation with the platforms, it’s just objectively the case that these major platforms have an extreme reach and that’s worth including in your coverage. Especially since many readers like yourself don’t understand just how influential the platform has become, because they haven’t known about it for more than a year or so.

BiteCode_dev 5y ago

It's also trending on imgur. Since it's not the same user base as HN, and they usually don't trend on the same things at all, I always assume it's a PR compaign when it happens. So my theory is tik tok is paying some company for that buzz.