The Story
Behind TikTok
TikTok, a social media platform targeted at young mobile phone users, was the second most downloaded app in the world in 2019. It was the most downloaded app in July 2020. As a political scientist who studies social media,’’ I’ve looked at what makes TikTok unique and why young people have flocked to it,’’ Sinthia Rivera (10th grade) said. In short, the phone-only app lets users record themselves dancing or goofing around to a music or spoken-word clip and then alter the videos using a wide array of effects. Despite its superficially frivolous nature, young people have been using the platform to send political messages, coordinate political actions and hang out in an online space largely free of adults. Each TikTok is a 3-to 60-second -long video that loops when finished. The majority of the screen is taken up by the video uploaded by the user. The app offers a wide range of options for customizing and combining these videos, including video taken with the user’s smartphone, photos uploaded from the web, emojis and other text superimposed on the video, and special effects like Instagram filters but for video. ‘’One thing I like about this app is that I like to make some videos with my friends and I get to watch some celebrities that they make TikTok,’’ Rivera (10th grade) said.
Impressions 