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As the Israel-Hamas war continues, TikTok, a short-form video app with over 100 million users in the United States, finds itself in the center of a heated political debate in America. Lawmakers in Washington, concerned about the platform’s influence during this turbulent period, are aggressively calling for a ban. They allege that TikTok is a vehicle for pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel propaganda, a charge that has implications far beyond the app’s entertainment value.

As governments and international bodies grapple with these challenges, the conversation around TikTok’s influence is a microcosm of larger discussions about the power and responsibility of digital platforms in the modern world and throughout our generation.

TikTok is becoming a projection of the generational divide in understanding certain political issues. The Israel-Hamas war only furthers the consequences that could potentially endanger the platform’s already tenuous credibility.

Senator Josh Hawley has been vocal in urging the Biden administration to ban TikTok, citing what he perceives as rampant anti-Israel content and threats to national security. This sentiment is echoed by Representative Mike Gallagher, chair of the House Intelligence Committee, who has accused TikTok of “brainwashing” American youth. Adding to the chorus, Senator Marco Rubio highlights concerns about TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, suggesting that the Chinese firm is using the platform to disseminate propaganda in the U.S.

ByteDance has consistently denied claims regarding privacy and security risks. The company challenges the notion that it has been promoting pro-Palestinian content disproportionately, revealing that it has removed over 925,000 videos from the conflict region for violations of its policies, including content that could be seen as promoting Hamas.

The debate over TikTok’s alleged anti-Israel bias in the conflict was further fueled by a series of posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, from Jeff Morris, former vice president of product at Tinder.

Morris highlighted that the hashtag #standwithpalestine and its variant with the Palestinian flag garnered significantly more views (almost 3 billion and 380 million, respectively) compared to the pro-Israeli hashtags #standwithisrael and its flag-inclusive counterpart (200 million and 2 million views, respectively). This disparity led to perceptions of TikTok favoring Palestinian narratives, sparking outrage among Israel supporters and fueling conspiracy theories about the Chinese government’s influence on American public opinion.

But this view was challenged by noting that these figures encompass several years of data and do not solely represent attitudes during the recent conflict. For instance, during the week of Oct. 16-23, #standwithisrael actually outperformed #standwithpalestine in views, reflecting a possible initial reaction to the war. Yet, in the following week, the trend reversed, potentially influenced by civilian casualties in Gaza. According to data released by TikTok on Nov 2, between October 7th and 31st, the hashtag #standwithisrael garnered 46 million views from U.S. users, surpassing the 29 million views for #standwithpalestine.

There was also a demographic skew, with 58 percent of the #FreePalestine hashtag’s audience being 18-24 year olds, contrasting with a Harvard-Harris poll where a majority of older voters backed Israel.

This debate captures a significant shift in perspectives among younger Americans, especially those of us in college. More and more students like myself are showing a growing understanding and empathy towards Palestinian viewpoints, a stark contrast to the older generations’ prevalent support for Israel.

Another reason causing the cognitive dissonance over what kind of voices do TikTok as a platform promote might be related to its particular algorithm design. Unlike traditional social media platforms, TikTok’s For You page offers a personalized content stream to each user, influenced by their previous interactions with different types of videos. This means that the TikTok algorithm tends to reinforce the user’s existing political views by showing content that aligns with those views.

While some users might frequently see videos related to protests or events in Gaza, others might not encounter such content at all. The prevalence of pro-Palestinian posts reflects TikTok’s young demographic, which polls show supports Palestine more than older groups. This generation gap worries Israel, as social media reduces its control of the media narrative.

Kecheng Fang, Assistant Professor at The Chinese University of Hong Kong’s School of Journalism and Communication, thinks the political conflicts spurred by TikTok’s role in the Israel-Hamas war highlights the dilemma algorithm-driven platforms pose.

“While creators are at the mercy of these powerful algorithms, their very strength becomes a weakness when the lack of oversight mechanisms makes it difficult for the platform to defend itself against accusations of bias and unfair practices,” Fang said.

The controversy surrounding TikTok in the context of the Israel-Hamas conflict highlights the powerful role of social media in shaping public opinion and political discourse. TikTok’s situation is emblematic of the complex interplay between technology, politics and societal change; what makes its position unfortunate is its Chinese ownership status.

As the debate continues, it becomes increasingly clear that decisions made about this platform will have far-reaching implications for how information is shared and perceived in a globally connected world. The outcome of this debate will not only affect TikTok but also set precedents for the governance of social media platforms in the future.

Allen Huang is a second year Media Studies masters student. He can be reached at [email protected].

Published on November 13, 2023 at 12:57 am