TikTok admits that its own employees can manipulate what content goes viral and what doesn’t

TikTok has admitted that its US staff has the ability to manipulate which videos go viral and which ones don’t, in an investigation led by Forbes. The US employees have been given this ability to “introduce celebrities and emerging creators to the TikTok community.” The revelation comes as a part of Forbes’ investigations into TikTok, and its “Heating” button, which can be used to put selected videos onto users’ For You pages, helping boost views by sidestepping the algorithm that supposedly drives the TikTok experience. According to Jamie Favazza, a representative for TikTok, “heating” is used for many reasons and not just to increase the number of views a specific video receives. He added that TikTok will “push select videos to help vary the content experience” and ensure that your feed is not limited to just a few trends. Favazza claims that just “.002% of videos in For You feeds” are heated, which is another indication that TikTok doesn’t do it very frequently. Although heated videos are said to account for “approximately 1-2 per cent” of “total daily video views,” the investigation was able to get an internal document that claims otherwise. Heated videos don’t come with a label to show that they’ve been boosted by TikTok like ads or sponsored posts do. Instead, they appear like any other videos that the algorithm would’ve selected for you. The information is not entirely unexpected. For years, there have been rumours that TikTok utilised the promise of sponsored content to persuade businesses and politicians to use its platform. Businesses, particularly those in the music industry, have been open about utilising the site to promote their products and services. TikTok is not the only social media platform that artificially boosts video views. According to reports, Facebook knew it was displaying false view counts but delayed fixing it in order to draw advertisers and media businesses to its platform. It ultimately paid $40 million to resolve a lawsuit about the matter.   What this implies is that TikTok, and other social media platforms are selecting winners and losers: companies and creators may have their place on someone’s For You page taken by someone with a closer connection to the firm. There have been instances where staff promoted videos from friends, business partners, and even their own accounts by heating up content that they shouldn’t have. TikTok and other social media platforms’ lack of openness regarding heating makes it difficult to determine which videos reached the top naturally, therefore creators may lose interest in the site if their videos do poorly in comparison to those that are being pushed. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.