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We need to move past the "TikTok = people dancing" stage of discussion. TikTok has expanded to be the dominant short form video platform for every interest, ni

We need to move past the "TikTok = people dancing" stage of discussion. TikTok has expanded to be the dominant short form video platform for every interest, niche, and micro niche you can imagine that exists, and even ones you can't imagine. Please anyone reading this comment replace "TikTok = people dancing" with "TikTok = feed + discovery for short form video tailored to your specific interests no matter how niche". Yes this includes programming, science, education, dancing, gaming, cooking, acrobatics, painting, arguing, politics, news, weather, etc. basically anything you can imagine that isn't against their content policies.

poulsbohemian 4y ago
That's fair - but if that's the case, how is that actually different from YouTube, Instagram, or any number of other platforms? It appears in two ways: 1) TikTok is really good at what they do. 2) They are a Chinese-owned company. It certainly feels like if it weren't for #2, they would be praised for their innovation and held up as a great American success story. I'm not saying that there shouldn't be skepticism in the name of national security, but of all the things threatening to destroy the planet on any given day, this feels low on the list.
- blincoln 4y ago
  While I think some of it is the UX, the main thing in TikTok's favour is the massive number of people creating concise, interesting content for it. YouTube videos are frequently 30-120 seconds of relevant content padded to 10-15 minutes. Most TikTok videos are close to just those 30-120 relevant seconds. If Congress bans it, they'll probably lose the trust and interest of a massive percentage of Americans under the age of 30.
- sanderjd 4y ago
  Yes it's different because of the foreign ownership. It really is that simple.
philsnow 4y ago
> feed + discovery for short form video tailored to your specific interests no matter how niche It is this and also that young people are especially malleable, so content that they see can cause long-term psychological and emotional damage, or--more pertinently to governments' interests--can introduce ideological change that they don't control.

poulsbohemian 4y ago

That's fair - but if that's the case, how is that actually different from YouTube, Instagram, or any number of other platforms? It appears in two ways: 1) TikTok is really good at what they do. 2) They are a Chinese-owned company. It certainly feels like if it weren't for #2, they would be praised for their innovation and held up as a great American success story. I'm not saying that there shouldn't be skepticism in the name of national security, but of all the things threatening to destroy the planet on any given day, this feels low on the list.

blincoln 4y ago
While I think some of it is the UX, the main thing in TikTok's favour is the massive number of people creating concise, interesting content for it. YouTube videos are frequently 30-120 seconds of relevant content padded to 10-15 minutes. Most TikTok videos are close to just those 30-120 relevant seconds. If Congress bans it, they'll probably lose the trust and interest of a massive percentage of Americans under the age of 30.
sanderjd 4y ago
Yes it's different because of the foreign ownership. It really is that simple.

philsnow 4y ago

> feed + discovery for short form video tailored to your specific interests no matter how niche It is this and also that young people are especially malleable, so content that they see can cause long-term psychological and emotional damage, or--more pertinently to governments' interests--can introduce ideological change that they don't control.