What is Tiktok?TikTok is a popular social media app that allows users to share short videos. The app is free to download and use, but users can pay for features like

TikTok is a popular social media app that allows users to share short videos. The app is free to download and use, but users can pay for features like TikTok Plus or access certain content. Its parent company is based in China. TikTok says it has more than 400 million 

 worldwide, including more than 100 million monthly active users who spend an average of 45 minutes per day using the app. 

TikTok has been downloaded more than 1 billion times since its launch in 2016.

There are more Tik Tok users in the United States than anywhere else in the world. The popular video platform is regularly accessed by more than 136 million Americans.

In recent years, TikTok has become increasingly controversial, resulting in outright bans in some jurisdictions. Critics have raised concerns about the company's policies on pornography and hate speech. 

Some people have privacy concerns about TikTok's data collection practices.

 Analysts say the company has not done enough to address issues of racism and violence. In one instance, a user posted a video of himself beating an elderly Chinese woman; in another case, a group of black men was accused of assaulting two Asian men while making racist comments. 

A recent study shows that American youth between the ages of 4 and 15 spend nearly 86 minutes a day on the Chinese-based social media platform TikTok, whereas China restricts its children to just 40 minutes a day. 

Many American journalists and writers have accused TikTok of abusing their internet freedoms to stunt US children socially through 24/7 viral content filled with sex, drugs, and violent challenges. 

They charge that TikTok recognizes a young user's interest in sex when he searches for pornography on its platform and immediately serves up more and more pornographic scenes. As a result, performance videos that promote sexual aggression, exploit sexual power relations and provide suggestions for sex shops gradually take over the 13-year-"ForYou" feed. TikTok doesn't do enough to differentiate between what it serves an adult and what it serves a kid. In addition, trends like the "skull breaker challenge" landed many minors in the hospitals and others in handcuffs, charged with aggravated assault.

In the United States, State attorneys general have launched a nationwide investigation into TikTok and its possible harmful effects on young users' mental health.

TikTok skeptics' concerns stem from the fact that TikTok is owned by a Chinese company ByteDance. An additional red flag from the US perspective is that China enacted a new National Intelligence Law in 2016, requiring Chinese citizens and companies to share data when required. 

a Trojan horse" - one that the Chinese  can employ to influence what US citizens see, hear, and  think

In 2020, as Donald Trump demanded TikTok's American business be sold, China passed a law that classified TikTok's recommendation algorithm as sensitive technology, which could prevent its sale to a foreign company. The law is believed to prohibit ByteDance from allowing US regulators to investigate its code more closely.

 using TikTok for any monitoring purposes. Still, given the number of injustices reported recently at the hands of Xi Jin Ping's government, this gesture is also understandably unconvincing from the US lens.

In an effort to alleviate such fears, TikTok keeps foreign users' data out of China. However, this alone does not matter much: BuzzFeed last month reported that Chinese staff accessed American users' data repeatedly last January. A TikTok's Trust and Safety department member was quoted as saying, "

Governments eye TikTok nervously for different reasons

 as the first consumer-facing app from China to gain popularity in the West. However, because the app is owned by China, other countries' lawmakers are concerned about how 

tightly it is controlling their populations' attention

. They worry that their viewing may be shaped by Chinese propagandists or that their personal data may fall into the wrong hands. 

India, formerly its biggest market, has already outlawed TikTok. America is among the nations that are deciding what to do next.

It is not uncommon for social media platforms to use algorithms to personalize content for individual users. This can involve recommending videos or accounts that a user is more likely to engage with, based on their past activity on the platform. 

However, there is no concrete proof that TikTok is actively manipulating its users or trying to control their behavior in any way.

TIKTOK, like many other social media apps, can be manipulative, as they can be used to push certain agendas or manipulate people's opinions. It can also influence people to buy certain products or services or spread false information

I believe that without solid proof It is not accurate to say that one platform's content policy is "worse" than another's. Just Like Facebook (or other popular/addictive social media apps) Tiktok also claims that it seeks to create a safe and welcoming environment for their users and have policies in place to remove content that violates their terms of service.

It is possible that the Chinese government could use TikTok or other social media platforms for its own purposes, just like 

the US government can use social media for its purpose. In recent years, the US government has used social media to reach out to citizens, promote its initiatives and policies, and provide information about government services.

Is Tiktok Really China's 'One Way Mirror' To The World?

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