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Newly released internal communications from TikTok executives reportedly show the company knows its app is harmful to American teenagers.
Tuesday, more than a dozen states and the District of Columbia. Filed a lawsuit against a video sharing platformclaims that it is designed to be addictive and harmful to young people.
Some of the court filings have been redacted, but Kentucky Public Radio You can read TikTok’s internal documents that have been digitally blacked out In a lawsuit filed by Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman. Redacted portions of the lawsuit reportedly indicate that TikTok employees appear to be aware that certain safety measures are ineffective. For example, screen time alerts are not actually intended to limit users’ screen time and have “negligible impact,” Louisville Public Media reported.
“But TikTok measured the tool’s success by three unrelated ‘success metrics’ rather than whether it actually reduced the time teens spend on the platform to address this harm.” . The first was “improving public trust in TikTok.” According to LPM, the Kentucky lawsuit states:
Other redacted parts of the Kentucky lawsuit reportedly include that face filters on the platform perpetuate “narrow beauty norms” that can “adversely impact the well-being of our community.” The document shows TikTok’s internal document admitting this.
In a statement shared with Quartz, a TikTok spokesperson said, “NPR’s actions in releasing information that is under court seal are highly irresponsible.” Unfortunately, this complaint cherry-picks misleading quotes and takes outdated documents out of context to misrepresent our commitment to community safety. ”
A spokesperson said the platform has “strong safeguards such as proactively removing users suspected of being underage, default screen time limits, family pairing, and restrictions on minors under 16. “We have voluntarily launched safety features such as default privacy for users.”
In 2022, state attorneys general, including California, Kentucky, and Massachusetts, We have launched an investigation into the potentially harmful effects of a popular app. About the mental health of teenage users. The investigation led to a lawsuit.
The states claim that TikTok’s algorithm, which determines what content users see on its main feed, called “For You,” is designed to be addictive. This algorithm shows you content tailored to your interests.
“TikTok claims its platform is safe for young people, but that is far from the truth,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James, one of the leaders of the bipartisan coalition. During the presentation The Wall Street Journal (NWSA) reported. “In New York and across the country, young people are being killed or injured during dangerous TikTok challenges, and many more are feeling sad, anxious, and depressed because of TikTok’s addictive nature.”
A TikTok spokesperson said the company “strongly disagrees with these claims and believes many of them to be inaccurate and misleading.” We’re proud of the work we’ve done to protect teens, and we remain deeply committed to this work and will continue to update and improve our products. ”
