2024 03 15
On Banning TikTok
Iām not aiming to make this a news commentary blog with quick takes on current events, but let me take a few moments to jot down some thoughts on this possible TikTok ban legislation currently in the news:
Thereās an evolving summary of America I have in my head that is essentially boiled down to this: America will (more or less) let you do whatever you want unless you fuck with Americaāthen America will kill you.
One of my complaints with America boils down to the killing portion of this summary, in the sense that I think we should be doing less of it. Killing people to solve our problems never seems to work, yet we go back to this game plan repeatedly for reasons Iāve yet to fully understand. Our current misguided killing, being done through our friends in Israel, has grown wildly unpopular in no small part due to the efforts of the fine folks behind TikTok.
Youād maybe think that, for this reason, Iād be against the banning of TikTok but youād be wrong. Iāve been in favor of TikTok regulations for what seems like an eternity now; Since before Trump was in favor of banning it, before he āchanged his mindā and decided he doesnāt care so much after all.
Part of the problem is how we are discussing the topic as a ban. Scott Galloway put it well by saying we donāt consider 65 mile per hour speed limit signs as the banning cars, we think of them as a safety regulation, which is exactly how we should talk about implementing new restraints on social media apps (be it foreign-owned names like TikTok or domestic products). Calling it a ban sounds unnecessarily extreme.
That said, itās the foreign-owned aspect of this issue that is whatās going to lead to this so-called ban on TikTok. Lawmakers were supposedly inundated with calls from frustrated kids who were prompted and connected by their TikTok app in an effort to stop this legislation. Ordinarily, this would be standard operating procedure in our so-called democracy, however, itās now being seen as the weaponizing of our youth by a foreign power in which we have no control. This, coinciding with the turning of the narrative against our stupid war is what has lawmakers fed up. America is being fucked with!
But how is this justification to outright ban a foreign company, just because you donāt like how they are shining a light on your shady dealings?! Well, my beef with TikTok is more due to unfair business practices (China does not allow US companies to operate within China yet expects us to allow them to operate here) and with social media toxicity generally. I donāt think we should be allowing our youth to use consequence-free, unregulated social media like we do, but since weāre a āfree countryā and lawmakers shrug their shoulders at the idea of implementing any sort of protection in this regard, we should at the very least ensure these companies, whom weāre allowing to raise our children, are not run by uncooperative foreign actors with motives fully unknown to us.
Damn. This took entirely too long to write, still comes off as generally vague and unconvincing, and therefore is why I donāt write commentary on news. Anyway, to distill my thoughts even further, I will say this: I think TikTok should be regulated, as I think all social media companies should have better oversight and far more accountability. I donāt think this country should allow foreign access to our markets without at least some level of reciprocity. And Iām going back to making photos while thinking less about messy geopolitical social media attention wars that are really about money, power, and control of the people.
šµtiktok chimešµ
-Clayton
Rural Illinois farmland. February, 2024. Ā© Clayton Hauck
On Banning TikTok
Iām not aiming to make this a news commentary blog with quick takes on current events, but let me take a few moments to jot down some thoughts on this possible TikTok ban legislation currently in the news:
Thereās an evolving summary of America I have in my head that is essentially boiled down to this: America will (more or less) let you do whatever you want unless you fuck with Americaāthen America will kill you.
One of my complaints with America boils down to the killing portion of this summary, in the sense that I think we should be doing less of it. Killing people to solve our problems never seems to work, yet we go back to this game plan repeatedly for reasons Iāve yet to fully understand. Our current misguided killing, being done through our friends in Israel, has grown wildly unpopular in no small part due to the efforts of the fine folks behind TikTok.
Youād maybe think that, for this reason, Iād be against the banning of TikTok but youād be wrong. Iāve been in favor of TikTok regulations for what seems like an eternity now; Since before Trump was in favor of banning it, before he āchanged his mindā and decided he doesnāt care so much after all.
Part of the problem is how we are discussing the topic as a ban. Scott Galloway put it well by saying we donāt consider 65 mile per hour speed limit signs as the banning of cars, we think of them as a safety regulation on driving, which is exactly how we should talk about implementing new restraints on social media apps (be it foreign-owned names like TikTok or domestic products). Calling it a ban sounds unnecessarily extreme, especially in this time of extreme actions, when having resources to freely vent our frustrations is as important as ever.
That said, itās the foreign-owned aspect of this issue that is whatās going to lead to this so-called ban on TikTok. Lawmakers were supposedly inundated with calls from frustrated kids who were prompted and connected by their TikTok app in an effort to stop this legislation. Ordinarily, this would be standard operating procedure in our so-called democracy, however, itās now being seen as the weaponizing of our youth by a foreign power in which we have no control. This, coinciding with the turning of the narrative against our stupid war is what has lawmakers fed up; Turning the social network into an echo chamber of discontent aimed directly at the United States by a foreign interest with a different viewpoint. America is being fucked with!
But how is this justification to outright ban a foreign companyājust because you donāt like how they are shining a light on your shady dealings?! Well, my beef with TikTok is more due to unfair business practices (China does not allow US companies to operate within China yet expects us to allow them to operate here) and with social media toxicity generally. I donāt think we should be allowing our youth to use consequence-free, unregulated social media as we do, but since weāre a āfree countryā and lawmakers shrug their shoulders at the idea of implementing any sort of protection in this regard, we should at the very least ensure these companies, whom weāre allowing to raise our children, are not run by uncooperative foreign actors with motives fully unknown to us. That it takes a shitty war largely of our making is an unfortunate means to an end, I fully agree.
Damn. This took entirely too long to write, still comes off as generally vague and unconvincing, and therefore is why I donāt write commentary on news. Anyway, to distill my thoughts even further, I will say this: I think TikTok should be regulated, as I think all social media companies should have better oversight and far more accountability. I donāt think this country should allow foreign access to our markets without at least some level of reciprocity. The world is an increasingly-complicated-and-increasingly-connected place and the people who control the algorithms have as much power as the people who control the guns. TikTok isnāt going away, thereās too much money at stake, but US leadership has finally seen the light on how vital control of the worldās most popular social network is to the operation of the American Machine, and that is why they will somehow, someway, wrestle away enough control of it to better sleep at night.
And Iām going back to making photos while thinking less about messy geopolitical social media attention wars that are really about money, power, and control of the people.
šµtiktok chimešµ
-Clayton
2024 01 30
The powers that control society ā government, military, corporations, media, billionaires, etc, etc ā used to have quite a firm grip on The Narrative that drives society. It used to be that creating content was an expensive and difficult pain in the ass. These days, we all have a media outlet in our pocket.
News outlets in developing countries are usually protected by barbed wire walls and high security access because these locations can be used as tools of chaos in the hands of the wrong people. These days, the bad people all have a Twitter and TikTok account and largely donāt need the news outlet.
Iām a huge fan of youtuber Jules Terpak, who does commentary on digital media and technology. She dropped this video called The power of TikTok edits which blew my mind and Iāve been obsessing over it ever since, trying to understand what it all means.
As an Old, Iāve made a conscious decision to steer clear of TikTok for a variety of reasons. Iām not yet sure this is a smart decision because I know the power it has and it might be in my best interest to understand how society is interacting with these new forms of media as itās kind of my job. Julesā video, posted below, is super worthwhile and was a terrifying peek into some of whatās going on on the platform.
Iām not going to claim to have some profound takeaway from this and Iām still churning through it in my head, however, Iām a bit shocked by how BAD much of this viral content is. The videos that are pulling in millions of views and driving culture areā¦ largely awful and not even original works. There is no quality control anymore. Itās almost like good quality is actually now a negative as it reveals itself as being inauthentic since someone clearly put energy, and therefor money, into making it.
Fuck.
As a former video editor myself, Iāll be the first to tell you how valuable that skill is and Iām now convinced I should probably dust off my Adobe Premiere workstation if I want to have any relevance as a human in society moving forward.
All Hail The Algorithm (and whoever controls them).
-Clayton
US Steel Tower, the cityās tallest building, as seen through an alley in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. November, 2023. Ā© Clayton Hauck
The powers that control society ā government, military, corporations, media, billionaires, etc, etc ā used to have quite a firm grip on The Narrative that drives society. It used to be that creating content was an expensive and difficult pain in the ass. These days, we all have a media outlet in our pocket.
News outlets in developing countries are usually protected by barbed wire walls and high security access because these locations can be used as tools of chaos in the hands of the wrong people. These days, the bad people all have a Twitter and TikTok account and largely donāt need the news outlet.
Iām a huge fan of youtuber Jules Terpak, who does commentary on digital media and technology. She dropped this video called The power of TikTok edits which blew my mind and Iāve been obsessing over it ever since, trying to understand what it all means.
As an Old, Iāve made a conscious decision to steer clear of TikTok for a variety of reasons. Iām not yet sure this is a smart decision because I know the power it has and it might be in my best interest to understand how society is interacting with these new forms of media, esp considering itās kind of my job. Julesā video, posted below, is super worthwhile and was an ominous (or is this just my warped perspective as an Old?) peek into some of whatās going on on the platform.
Iām not going to claim to have some profound takeaway from this and Iām still churning through it in my head, however, Iām a bit shocked by how BAD much of this viral content is. The videos that are pulling in millions of views and driving culture areā¦ largely aesthetically awful and not even original works. There is no quality control anymore, I guess? Speed, timing, and the almighty algorithm are vastly more important than aesthetic value in this world. Itās almost like good quality is actually now shunned as it reveals itself as being inauthentic, since someone clearly put energy, and therefore money, into making it.
Fuck.
As a former video editor myself, Iāll be the first to tell you how valuable this skill is and Iām now convinced I should probably dust off my Adobe Premiere workstation if I want to have any relevance as a human in society moving forward. Weāve sure come a long, long way from Battleship Potemkin.
All Hail The Algorithm (and whoever controls them).
-Clayton