Progressivism on Social Media: TikTok as a Vehicle for Racial Justice

by Alyssa Huang

Mentor: Prof. Jasmine McNealy; Student Editor: Sanika Mahajan

When you’re reading this article, TikTok may already be an app of the past (Kelly). Regardless of its fate, however, TikTok’s defining features — the short videos, the For You page — will undoubtedly find their way back into American social media, perhaps just under another name. In a time when an increasing number of young adults use social media to communicate, it is important to examine how features popularized by TikTok shape the discourse surrounding racial justice among teenagers.

What is TikTok?

Launched in 2016 by Chinese company ByteDance, TikTok is now one of the world’s most used social media platforms, boasting 800 million monthly average users (MAUs) worldwide and earning the title of most downloaded app in the Apple AppStore (Mohsin). Upon entering the app, users are directed to the For You page, where they can scroll through an endless batch of content curated for them by TikTok’s algorithm. Tech journalists have cited TikTok’s ability to closely mimic users’ tastes in videos as an addictive feature of the app that has contributed to its success (Herrman).

Teenagers and young adults dominate TikTok more than other social media: in 2019, 41% of TikTok users were aged between 16–24 as compared to the 36% of Instagram users under 24 (Clement). Additionally, user engagement with the app is high, with 90% of those with the app downloaded accessing it on a daily basis (Mohsin). The advent of Covid-19, which left many quarantined, has undoubtedly contributed to an increased usage of TikTok that will only fuel its power as a voice for the younger generation.

TikTok’s Role in Racial and Social Justice

The death of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Elijah McClain among others, spurred conversations about police brutality in America that then spread to the topic of racial justice as a whole. Surprisingly, one group that has been incredible contributors to this dialogue are teenagers on TikTok. In the last few months, my For You page, along with that of many of my friends, have been filled with educational videos on BIPOC history, personal experiences, or videos from protests around the world. As one NPR article title aptly puts it “TikTok Pivots From Dance Moves To A Racial Justice Movement” (Allyn).

Regarding the topic of racial justice, the success of peer-to-peer education content in particular demonstrates a demand from TikTok users to learn more about the struggles of minorities. In an attempt to maximize user engagement and thus data collection, TikTok limits its videos to one minute and tailors each user’s For You page to closely reflect his/her tastes. Regardless of the company’s profit-driven motive, however, TikTok has done a particularly good job in spreading educational videos due to the same engagement-maximizing features. Here are a few examples:

1. Fast-adapting Algorithm: By now, the vast majority of users understand that if you want more of a certain type of video on your For You page, you should “interact” with the video in question (i.e. like, comment, and share). TikTok’s algorithm reacts pretty quickly to these user interactions, and, for users wanting to view more racial justice content, their For You page will reflect this interest as soon as they like a couple similar videos. In this way, users who want to learn more about racial justice are able to allow TikTok to do the work of compiling resources for them.
2. Short Videos: Due to the one minute time limit, activists have been getting creative in how to grab the viewers’ attention quickly and disseminate information in a concise manner. TikTok users who don’t want to invest time in researching social issues can now easily get tidbits of information from TikTok. Eventually, after seeing multiple of these educational videos, users may even be inspired to research the issues themselves.
3. Any Video Can Go Viral: The vast majority of content on TikTok’s For You page comes from people the user doesn’t know or follow. TikTok’s algorithm showcases creators’ videos to a sampling of users, and, based on how those users interact with the video, it decides whether the video blows up or remains unseen (Matsakis). For this reason, those wanting to educate their peers — oftentimes small creators — have a greater chance of their videos going viral.

In addition to the spread of educational content, teenage users have demonstrated their ability to mobilize quickly through TikTok in support of a cause. Earlier this year, Mr. Beast, a popular creator on Youtube, pledged to give $10,000 to the creator with the most liked video using his sound in a week. TikTok user Eleanor Stoa pledged to donate the money to relief organisations in Yemen if she were to win. Even though she only had less than 700 followers at the time, her video accrued 2.6 million likes in a matter of days and garnered tons of support from users concerned about the crisis. Stoa won the money and later made another TikTok updating members of the community that her donations were received. When reflecting on TikTok’s role making her video go viral, Stoa notes “it would definitely be a lot harder to blow up on Instagram or Twitter randomly like you can on TikTok.”

Limitations

While TikTok has certainly been a facilitator in spreading awareness on the racial injustices in America, the application has faced and continues to face its fair share of issues. Some black creators, tired of the constant burden of explaining themselves to followers, are considering quitting the app (Rosenblatt). Additionally, many creators of color have accused TikTok of explicitly limiting the spread of race-related content, a process otherwise known as shadowbanning (McCluskey).

However, arguably the largest problem with TikTok’s role in racial justice movements is a problem faced by all social media platforms: that our feeds often reflect and reinforce our own personal and political views. In this way, though there exists a large supply of educational videos on TikTok, these videos may never reach the ones who need to see them most — those who hold outdated views on race. Even worse, individuals more inclined toward racism may only see racist videos that confirm instead of challenge their beliefs. NYU Clinical Assistant Professor in Media, Culture, and Communications Dr. Isra Ali attributes this phenomenon to TikTok and other social media’s business models: “[Platforms] don’t just want your individual momentary attention; they want your sustained attention. Because when they do that, when they get your sustained attention, you give them data. And ultimately for platforms, data is the commodity that they then sell to their actual customer base who are advertisers and marketers.”

Looking Ahead

When it comes to education on a topic as complex as racial justice, social media will never be able to replace books, research articles, or in-person conversations. However, the shift in content on TikTok has proven that many of its users are concerned with racial inequalities and seek to educate themselves at least in part through the app. I remain optimistic that as long as users are open-minded, apps like TikTok, previously reserved for dancing, can play a crucial role in creating effective and lasting change.

Sources

• Allyn, Bobby. “TikTok Pivots From Dance Moves To A Racial Justice Movement.” NPR, NPR, 7 June 2020, www.npr.org/2020/06/07/871065917/tiktok-pivots-from-dance-moves-to-a-racial-justice-movement.
• Clement, J. “Instagram: Age Distribution of Global Audiences 2020.” Statista, 24 July 2020, www.statista.com/statistics/325587/instagram-global-age-group/.
• “Download TikTok Logo Vector (SVG) Logo.” Worldvectorlogo, worldvectorlogo.com/logo/tiktok-logo.
• Herrman, John. “How TikTok Is Rewriting the World.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 10 Mar. 2019, www.nytimes.com/2019/03/10/style/what-is-tik-tok.html.
• Kelly, Caroline. “Trump Issues Orders Banning TikTok and WeChat from Operating in 45 Days If They Are Not Sold by Chinese Parent Companies.” CNN, Cable News Network, 7 Aug. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/08/06/politics/trump-executive-order-tiktok/index.html.
• Matsakis, Louise. “How TikTok’s ‘For You’ Algorithm Actually Works.” Wired, Conde Nast, www.wired.com/story/tiktok-finally-explains-for-you-algorithm-works/.
• McCluskey, Megan. “Black TikTok Creators Say Their Content Is Being Suppressed.” Time, Time, 22 July 2020, time.com/5863350/tiktok-black-creators/.
• Mohsin, Maryam. “10 TikTok Statistics That You Need to Know [July 2020].” Oberlo, Oberlo, 22 July 2020, www.oberlo.com/blog/tiktok-statistics.
• Rosenblatt, Kalhan. “From the Renegade to Black Lives Matter: How Black Creators Are Changing TikTok Culture.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 30 July 2020, www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/renegade-black-lives-matter-how-black-creators-are-changing-tiktok-n1235255.