this post was submitted on 15 Jan 2025
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Tiktok shows you more of what you engage in and throws some randomness in there so you don't get stuck in a local minimum. It's like when YouTube's algorithm kinda worked and you could see how it'd possibly be better; bytedance actually pulled it off instead of enshittifying.
And it takes time for the algorithm to learn your tastes. If you're a mouth breather at heart you're gonna get mouth breather content no matter how much you try and change it. If you're a perv and linger on thirst traps... You're going to see more thirst traps.
With your described scenario, that's not unique to tiktok- that can happen on any platform when the child is unsupervised. It could have been twitch, Roblox, Instagram, Snapchat, it myriad other platforms; the real problem there is inattentive parenting.
I've learned about more shitty local government practices from tiktok than any other platform. I've been exposed to points of view I'd never otherwise see. Random videos have triggered just as much progress on my mental health as years of therapy. I've found people far more articulate than me explaining shit that combats my family's far right talking points in a way where they actually listen and change their mind, and vice versa.
I've also consumed an inordinate amount of white hot memes and mountains of brain rot lol
But yeah. The TT algorithm is a mirror (given time). It reflects your persona back at you with the type of content you see.
So having a coworker break into your child's account is inattentive parenting?
Tell me you don't have kids.
No really, please confirm.
I don't want to see "kids in cages" on the news again.
I have kids. I don't see how that's relevant here.
Children shouldn't have social media accounts in my opinion. Nothing to attack or break into if it doesn't exist.
A coworker shouldn't know enough or otherwise have enough access to your child such that they can break into their accounts.
Failing all that, parents need to have frank discussions about the potential dangers of internet fans turning into real life people, and some of the more severe potential consequences.
Even without those three layers of failure, your kids need to know about basic online account security, like using unique strong passwords and two factor authentication.
That all being said- I don't know the people or the situation. But from your short account of things that's what I see as wrong with the situation.
In general, the social networks of today are optimized for extracting value and attention from adult brains; an incomplete adolescent brain stands no chance.
Kids can still socialize electronically just fine in group chats with the advent of RCS implementation on both major phone platforms.
Not sure what kids in cages have to do with anything or why they were mentioned.
Kids in cages is mentioned because penetrating your kids' social media account is a break of trust and privacy, which is a very bad form of parenting, a good parent would have trust relationship and could ask the child to show the weird behavior on their phone
I failed to see the randomness then because it's way too similar content way too quickly
It does get stuck in a rut sometimes. If you kill the app and come back to it lsome time ater, that signals that they need to shake things up so your "randomness factor" (my term) gets boosted the next time you start scrolling.