Internationally popular social media app Tik Tok is a large platform in which misinformation has spread regarding COVID-19. But although the damage is irreversible, can Tik Tok change its course and halt the lies from spreading even more?
Citizen journalism has been a controversial topic, questioning whether it should be more controlled. Luke Goode described citizen journalists as “individuals who contribute news content to mainstream media outlets and may be aligned with particular social movements”(Iribarren, L. 2019). A large factor that questions the validity of citizen journalists is that they are not held to the Journalists Code of Ethics, meaning misdemeanours are made with ease and fake news can be effortlessly spread.
Tik Tok’s controversial For You Page has allowed citizen journalism to go too far and spread misinformation about COVID-19. Tik Tok’s echo chamber-like For You Page means that any “individual video can get picked up in ways that they don’t on other platforms and go viral”(Dias, A. 2021).
An unfortunate and influential video from Australia directly linked death statistics with the COVID-19 vaccine. This Tik Tok spread misinformation to more than “130 000 viewers”(RMIT ABC Fact Check. 2021) and was shared by 2000 users. What is even more worrying is that citizen journalists “are seen in these videos promoting anti-vaccine statements whilst wearing medical equipment”(O’Connor, C. 2021). With international anti-vax and anti-lockdown protests, there has been an influx of Tik Toks to ‘warn’ the public about these ‘dictatorial’ restrictions and Tik Tok’s “algorithm is allowing the content to flourish”(Dias, A. 2021).
In addition to citizen journalism spreading fake news, French influencers have also reported a “mysterious advertising agency offering to pay them if they agreed to smear Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine with negative fake stories”(Leicester, J. 2021).
In a study about receiving falsehoods in the media, the “figure is small for France at 29 percent” (Koc-Michalska, K. Et Al. 2020) of people believing they are exposed to fake news. This statistic is not affected by political affiliation, whether right or left-wing. Consequently, the rise of misinformation on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic is worrying, as many French citizens do not actively scrutinise the media that they view every day.
Although Tik Tok’s algorithm has allowed for the spread of fake news, citizen journalism can be used for good. French President Emmanuel Macron has taken to Tik Tok to fight the misinformation spread concerning the vaccine in France. He explains to the public that the vaccine is “the only weapon”(Soares, L. 2021) against a fourth wave of infections in France.
Additionally, These alternate perspectives allow marginalised societies or hushed events to be exposed to the public. Citizen journalism on social media plays multiple roles of “exposing corruption, encouraging accountability, documents abuses of power and giving alternate views on local and international current affairs”(Lribarren, L. 2019). Tik Tok’s citizen journalists even played a considerable role in society’s realisation of the significance of the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, it is often viewed as an uplifting and freeing opportunity for society to take part in.
Although citizen journalism allows for the spread of facts and silenced events, it also often promotes politicised fake news. During a period of social and political turmoil, social media applications like Tik Tok need to take this issue seriously and reduce the volume of misinformation spread to international and impressionable audiences.
