TikTok ‘Sounds’ Used to Spread COVID-19 Vaccine Misinformation: Think Tank

A TikTok function that permits customers so as to add one other particular person’s audio to their movies is getting used to advertise deceptive and dangerous content material about COVID-19 vaccines, a suppose tank stated in a brand new report.

The London-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue analysed 124 movies that used speech from 4 unique TikTok movies, together with two that have been eliminated by the corporate for breaking its COVID misinformation guidelines, to push misinformation and stoke fears about vaccine side-effects. The 124 movies had greater than 20 million views.

“There’s a part of the content which is still able to travel,” stated Ciaran O’Connor, an analyst on the counter-extremism suppose tank. He likened the unfold of misinformation although TikTok’s “Sounds” function to WhatsApp audio messages that proliferated in the course of the pandemic.

Viral tendencies the place customers create their very own movies by riffing off the identical music or speech clip are a central a part of TikTok. The standard social video platform, which noticed explosive development in the course of the pandemic, stated it opinions the audio of rule-breaking movies and will stop these getting used as Sounds by different customers. It stated these circumstances have been brought on by human content material moderation errors. It additionally stated Sounds could be reported on the app.

Audio from one video of a person implying the COVID vaccine’s quick growth made it unsafe and making deceptive comparisons to different sicknesses has been utilized in greater than 4,500 movies, ISD discovered.

TikTok stated it had beforehand restricted the distribution of movies utilizing this Sound, reasonably than take away it fully, because it was solely deemed to be doubtlessly deceptive. Even so, the highest 25 movies on the TikTok web page for this Sound have been considered a complete of 16.7 million occasions.

ISD discovered most of the movies used the Sound to sign help for the assertion. TikTok stated it took down among the movies utilizing the Sound and made the Sound harder to search out in searches after reviewing the report’s findings. It eliminated the three different Sounds recognized within the report.

“We strive to promote an authentic TikTok experience by limiting the spread of misleading content, including audio, and promoting authoritative information about COVID-19 and vaccines across our app,” a TikTok spokesperson stated.

ISD discovered the app had added labels directing to authoritative COVID info on solely two of the 124 movies. The firm stated this was as a result of labels have been solely added on movies with particular hashtags.

TikTok final week introduced modifications to its content-moderation methods for sure content material, shifting to totally automated reviewing methods for classes like nudity and violent or graphic materials.

© Thomson Reuters 2021