- TikTok Community Guidelines will see introduction of stricter For You eligibility standards.
- Video sharing entity says this code emphasizes responsible behavior on and off the platform
- According to the recently released Reuters Institute Digital News report 2023 survey, Kenya leads in world TikTok usage.
Popular video sharing platform TikTok, has unveiled significant updates to its Community Guidelines and introduced new features aimed at supporting creators and maintaining a safe environment for users. The platform’s Community Guidelines, which outline rules and standards for all users, have been updated to provide greater clarity and transparency.
These updates, set to take effect in a few weeks, include refined definitions for policies on hate speech and health misinformation. Additionally, TikTok has detailed how it moderates features like Search, LIVE, and the For You feed to ensure a positive user experience.
One of the key updates is the introduction of stricter For You eligibility standards. Accounts that repeatedly post content violating these standards will be temporarily ineligible for recommendation in the For You feed, making their content harder to find.
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TikTok community guidelines
Creators will receive notifications about such restrictions and will have the option to appeal. In a bid to enhance creators’ understanding of the platform’s rules, TikTok has implemented a warning strike system for first-time policy violators.
This system alerts creators about their violation and provides guidance on how to appeal future strikes. However, zero-tolerance policies, such as incitement to violence, will lead to immediate account bans without warnings.
“Today we’re also publishing the TikTok Creator Code of Conduct, which will take effect in the coming weeks. These are the standards that we expect creators involved in TikTok programs, features, events, and campaigns to follow on and off-platform,” the social platform said in a notice to users.
To empower creators further, TikTok is launching ‘Account Check,’ a feature that allows creators to audit their account and recent posts to see if they are in good standing. This feature will also inform creators if certain features, like comments or direct messaging, have been restricted due to policy violations.
Furthermore, TikTok has introduced the TikTok Creator Code of Conduct, setting standards for creators participating in TikTok programs, events, and campaigns. TikTok says this code emphasizes responsible behavior on and off the platform, ensuring a positive and safe environment for all participants.
“In this latest iteration, we have added and updated definitions to clarify our policies, such as those regarding hate speech and health misinformation. We’ve also included more detail about how we moderate TikTok features such as Search, LIVE, and the For You feed,”
nEarlier in April the Chinese video-sharing platform said it is ready to collaborate with the Kenyan government to keep its local community safe on the platform. This was in the wake of concerns that cotent shared on the popular platform promotes violence, sex, hate speech, vulgar language and offensive behaviour.
The Executive Officer of Bridget Connect Consultancy Bob Ndolo lodged a petition in Parliament last year wanting TikTok banned in the country, terming it a threat to cultural and religious values.
Kenya’s eastern neighbour Somalia last year banned TikTok and Telegram, saying they were being used by “terrorists” to spread propaganda.
The United States House of Representatives two months ago passed a bill giving ByteDance about six months to divest TikTok’s U.S. assets or face a ban over security concerns.
Kenya Tops World in TikTok Usage
Italy’s competition authority in last month also fined three units of TikTok $10.91 million (KSh1.4 billion) in total for inadequate checks on content potentially harmful to young or vulnerable users.
Read also: TikTok rolling out workshops to clean up piling mess in Kenya amidst intense scrutiny
TikTok is gaining ground in the distribution of news
The report also shows that TikTok is gaining ground in the distribution of news particularly among younger audiences, while Facebook, which has long held the top spot, is losing ground.
Nevertheless, TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat users tend to pay more attention to celebrities and social media influencers than media companies when it comes to News topics, in sharp contrast to Facebook and Twitter users. These legacy social networks still attract most attention and lead conversations.
Evidence supports that audiences tend to selectively avoid stories that they deem too depressing or anxiety-provoking in an effort to protect their mental health. In terms of growth, TikTok remains the fastest-growing social network, with 44 per cent of users using it and is popular among 18-24 year olds.
