While TikTok could soon be banned across the Atlantic, certain creators are stepping up to defend the interest of their content, particularly for children who love the platform.
The looming threat of a TikTok ban in the United States has sparked a wave of concern among content creators who use the platform as an educational tool. A recent Reuters report titled “Content creators worry about miseducation in a world without TikTok” (Content creators worry about poor education in a world without TikTok) highlights the concerns of several TikTok users regarding the potential impact of such a ban on the dissemination of knowledge.
The US government considers TikTok, owned by ByteDance, a danger to national intelligence services, and is pushing for the company to divest its interests in the app or face a ban. If the law is passed and signed by President Joe Biden, ByteDance will have 165 days to transfer control of TikTok to a U.S.-based company. Otherwise, TikTok would be removed from American application stores, including those of Apple, Google and Samsung.
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What if TikTok was essential for educating children?
The report tells the story of a teacher from a small southern town who turned to TikTok to engage her students in grammar lessons. Her success on the platform has been dazzling, as she now has 5.8 million followers. She worries thata ban would deprive people of access to “high-quality educational videos” that helped them improve their education.
Dr. Youn, a plastic surgeon who has 8.4 million followers on TikTok, agrees, emphasizing the platform’s role in disseminating information and education. Another creator, who has over a million followers, uses TikTok to educate young people about topics like body positivity and transgender identity.
However, not everyone shares these concerns. Karen North, a professor at the University of Southern California, warns of the privacy risks associated with TikTok. She emphasizes that the real problem lies in the personal information that users voluntarily share with an entity that does not comply with the privacy protection standards in force in the United States.