What TikTok’s Secret Heating Button Reveals About Virality Online

Algorithmic heating: Virality is a choice and the game is rigged.

Photo by Solen Feyissa on Unsplash

We are all supposed to be equal. Some are just more equal than others. In society, power laws apply. Most of the resources are controlled by a small percentage of people.

It’s no different in the creator economy. A few individuals get most of the money. The rest? Peanuts, if anything.

And who is the secret king-maker behind the throne? The algorithm.

What makes the algorithm tick?

On the internet, the algorithm is working behind the scenes, determining what you get to see. And what drives its choices?

Your stupid human brain.

You might think you are logical. You are not. Something else drives your behavior. Your emotions.

Whether you click on something is affected much more by your passions than by logic. And that’s where recommender algorithms come in. Your clicks feed them, screwing them up in the process.

Don’t take my word for it. Zuck says so too!