I’m staggered so many people seem to think TikTok isn’t used to sway public opinions.
Frequent TikTok users in Taiwan more likely to agree with pro-China narratives, study finds
Submitted 3 weeks ago by daniel_callahan@jlai.lu to technology@lemmy.world
Comments
TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
angstylittlecatboy@reddthat.com 3 weeks ago
It’s people who run apologia for anything the Chinese government or even Chinese business does.
Meanwhile I remember that TikTok helped Trump’ s youth outreach campaign with the message they gave when US access was restored, so they’ve already signalled they’re not on my side.
shadowfax13@lemmy.ml 3 weeks ago
tiktok is no exception, today all major content sources are rottenly biased.
like anyone relying on msm or /r/worldnews will think israel is fighting for survival against an ultra-advance alien invasion rather than genociding unarmed starving population with missiles, drones and snipers.
ToadOfHypnosis@lemm.ee 3 weeks ago
This is because Tiktok slows spread of anti-CCP content and boosts pro-CCP content. Exactly like they keep swearing they don’t. ByteDance answers to their State Capitalism daddy Xi, they are not independent as they claim.
thebestaquaman@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Whatever anyone China-affiliated says they’re not doing, it’s a safe bet that’s exactly what they’re doing.
I’m not going to push any conspiracy theories, but I believe the strongest evidence pointing towards Covid-19 originating in a lab is the Chinese government insisting that it didn’t, while prohibiting anyone not under their control from investigating. That doesn’t mean it did originate from a lab, but if anything, that’s what it points to. To be explicit: My impression is that, currently, most available evidence points towards natural origins.
CosmoNova@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
All I‘m saying is that said lab was one of the largest ones in the world to research SarS at that time and if my memory serves me right was only one of three in the world to research the type of SarS that could infect humans. Cave bats knowing to carry it naturally don‘t live anywhere near that region either (a detail most people probably never even considered). That makes the whole food stall theory doubtful with this giant lab next door.
Mix that with how the local and then national Chinese government have mismanaged the outbreak every step of the way (I still remember the terrifying headlines from late 2019 of warning doctors that vanished and fleeing international journalists vividly, so don‘t tell me that didn‘t happen) and it looks a whole lot like a classic lab leak combined with no action to contain it because then you would have to admit something went wrong. Because yes, lab leaks do happen from time to time but they‘re usually contained, but there are no signs containment was ever a priority in Wuhan apart from blocking national flights (international flights still went in and out though. The government didn‘t even issue a warning. Gotta keep the trade flowing I guess.).
It‘s also extremely valuable to actually listen to virologists word for word because what they have said many times is that Covid-19 just doesn‘t look like a virus you would make in a lab, implying it would be reckless to do research on something like that. That‘s the sole reason they disprove of the lab theory. They blindly trust their Chinese colleagues to work as vigilant and exemplary as they do when the timeline points to the opposite.
I doubt we will ever see any proof of a lab leak because Chinese officials have swept that lab and the records squeaky clean before they allowed any foreign investigation of the site. The lab leak theory is by far the most plausible one and believe me when I say it will happen again because those corrupt structures are still intact.
Goretantath@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
The first week of the pandemic, a youtube channel posted ALL the info on the lab leak, it was scrubbed off the face of the internet. Showed the lab and the food stall the lab worker went to nearby. Also that a california lab was sharing reasearch with said lab in wuhan and stopped just a bit prior to the leak.
homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
All according to plan
Lumisal@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
This is how I expect China to actually absorb Taiwan.
The only legitimate reason they want it at this point is the chip manufacturies, and those are rigged with self destruct explosives in case of a losing war.
But use propaganda and bribes to get the country to join willingly, and that extremely valuable financial and scientific infrastructure remains safe.
balder1991@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
I suppose that’s… better than a war in the future?
FiskFisk33@startrek.website 3 weeks ago
oh yeah, just giving in to opression is easier than fighting it, ain’t it?
KumaSudosa@feddit.dk 3 weeks ago
So when a person shows up at your house with a gun, you should also just move out and hand it over?
McDropout@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
According to western media like Instagram, Facebook, X. I should go outside of my house when Israelis come into my doorsteps and take my house. I should also use my hard earned tax money to supply them with more weapons so they can steal more of our houses.
But when China does it with Tiktok, it’s bad. bad
I’m so tired if europeans and people of european descent pretending like they have moral high ground over China. I’m done with the double standards. I’m tired of how colonized their brains are.
balder1991@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
That’s not the right analogy here. The better analogy would be something like:
Your neighbor shows up with a document saying your land belongs to his land. You said no way, you have connections with someone important that says your house is yours and you’re armed to your teeth if they want to invade your house. But now your son says he thinks your house belongs to your neighbor, and he’s likely waiting until you’re old enough to possibly give it up.
reiterationstation@lemm.ee 3 weeks ago
Why
xeekei@lemmy.zip 3 weeks ago
Let’s hope for Loops to take over!
considine@lemmy.ml 2 weeks ago
Frequent Guardian readers more likely to agree with anti-China narratives, study finds.
devolution@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
Tik Tok seriously is a fucking cancer.
andybytes@programming.dev 2 weeks ago
Capitalism is fucking cancer. TikTok is a tool that uses algorithms to manipulate public perception. Trump had interest in this app, not because it was telling the truth, but you can tell it to tell a certain truth. We pretty much don’t have any education anymore. It’s just training for conformity to work at your McWagey job.
K1nsey6@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
The only one opposed to unification is the US
KumaSudosa@feddit.dk 3 weeks ago
And the Taiwanese 😂
Kolanaki@pawb.social 3 weeks ago
*Pro-West Taiwan narratives.
ShittyBeatlesFCPres@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
TikTok shows me BBQ techniques, random models, and teenagers trying to be professional stuntmen and almost dying. And that one time sea shanties. You have to train the algorithm.
KumaSudosa@feddit.dk 3 weeks ago
I’ve only ever tried to watch travel videos, yet they still feed me the occassional far-right propaganda and even islamism
qweertz@programming.dev 2 weeks ago
It’s so jover. Not even “reputable” news outlets know what correlation is anymore 💀
thebestaquaman@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
This is a case where you have to be careful about cause-effect order. I assume that Tiwanese people that are heavily opposed to China are more likely to avoid tiktok. But of course, it’s been shown that tiktok tends to show more pro-China “content” as well, and likely influences the opinions of its users.
jeffw@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Like you said, it’s not new information that Tik Tok hides posts on certain topics and promotes posts on other topics though, so it isn’t surprising either way. I’ll add that they do it with more than just pro-China content
tonywu@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
It’s not just that, it’s also culture takeover. A lot of young people in Taiwan speak and think like mainland Chinese now.
CosmoNova@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
TikTok is definitely the cause and has been washing the brains of friends and family for many years now. It‘s odd how the most apolitical people suddenly drop pro Chinese talking points at a gathering.
But what‘s worse is how it radicalizes young adults and teenagers and pushes them to the far right. It‘s well documented how much anti-democratic content the platform is pushing aggressively and that‘s extremely beneficial for China.
muntedcrocodile@lemm.ee 3 weeks ago
I’m recon its a bit of both tbh.