this post was submitted on 17 Jan 2025
157 points (92.0% liked)
Technology
61203 readers
5084 users here now
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
Our Rules
- Follow the lemmy.world rules.
- Only tech related content.
- Be excellent to each other!
- Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
- Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
- Politics threads may be removed.
- No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
- Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
- Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
- Accounts 7 days and younger will have their posts automatically removed.
Approved Bots
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
This has been my take ever since this conversation started, I’m not on TikTok because I generally dislike social media and would become dangerously addicted to its format. But as far as propaganda, disinformation, and China snooping on users without access to state secrets it’s no worse than facebook or Twitter or any other social media app.
China snooping shouldn't even be the first reason it's banned, only apps actually required for the job should be on government devices. That's basic OPSec.
Tiktok is worse because Facebook and Twitter cooperate with governments to remove misinformation. As well as allow governments to review their algorithm.
Misinformation is going to exist. What's bad is when a platform is pushing it intentionally and your government has no power to remove it.
Even small countries like New Zealand were able to work with Facebook to get content removed.
You could argue that Twitter and Facebook are now doing exactly what tiktok is accused of doing but the difference is that the next American president supports them promoting this misinformation.
Let the record show that Facebook reluctantly cooperated with the government because they had to. Just like they reluctantly implemented better network security measures after shit happened because Zuck and Sandberg saw that as an inconvenience. They wanted to innovate their product and by that I mean make money, fucking greedy bastards.
The book An Ugly Truth: Inside Facebook's Battle for Domination by Sheera Frenkel & Cecilia Kang has all the juicy details.
Yes I know they didn't do it enthusiastically but that's what happens when you're under the government. Bytedance has no obligation to do the same.