The video sharing platform, between July and December last year, removed over hundreds of thousands of videos for going against its rules concerning the misinformation of the 2020 US presidential election and the covid19 pandemic. Details were presented as part of the company’s transparency report.
The election misinformation was the most important, TikTok removed over 347,225 videos for sharing false information concerning the election. According to the report, 441,000 clips were abolished from the video sharing app recommendation because the content was “unsubstantiated.” The company took down 51,505 videos which contain misinformation about covid19.
The company stated that it was well prepared for the election and that much of the misinformation was within the United States. “We prepared for 65 different scenarios, such as premature declarations of victory or disputed results, which helped us respond to emerging content appropriately and in a timely manner”. TikTok writes; “We also prepared for more domestic activity based on trends we’ve observed on how misleading content is created and spread online.
The social media video sharing platform is still struggling to contain viral misinformation. According to Media Matters, “the election, viral videos spreading debunked conspiracy theories about voter fraud racked up hundreds of thousands of views before they were removed”.