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A comment on TikTok Feeds Teens a Diet of Darkness. Parent comment

Re:TikTok Feeds Teens a Diet of Darkness by TheSpiceIsLife on Saturday May 13, 2023 @05:29PM (#35932924)
No no no. You're confused.

There is no algorithm acting independently. The responsibile agent(s) is(are) a person(people).

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Re:TikTok Feeds Teens a Diet of Darkness by placatedmayhem on Saturday May 13, 2023 @05:37PM (#35933009)
Exactly. These outcomes are the results of the algorithms and their tuning, whether intentional or not. Humans are responsible for it and can tune it differently, to a different result. However, these new tunings may reduce engagement or other profit drivers, which a for-profit company will obviously not want to do.
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Re:TikTok Feeds Teens a Diet of Darkness by parker_mountain on Saturday May 13, 2023 @05:33PM (#35932967)
No no no. You're confused.

I didn't absolve the creator of guilt, I just said that it's unlikely they're intentionally trying to make her sad. They're just trying to increase engagement - at any cost.

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Re:TikTok Feeds Teens a Diet of Darkness by xapata on Saturday May 13, 2023 @06:37PM (#35933455)
Why? What motivates ByteDance?
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Re:TikTok Feeds Teens a Diet of Darkness by spondylosaurus on Saturday May 13, 2023 @07:06PM (#35933678)
Profit, presumably? Same as any other company. Engagement = profit has been the formula for some time now.
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Re:TikTok Feeds Teens a Diet of Darkness by xapata on Monday May 15, 2023 @03:11PM (#35953153)
There's some speculation that ByteDance is motivated by political goals as well as, or more than, profit.
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