tiktok is destroying itself

[@HigherMammal]

I'm so tired of advertising being so invasive and ubiquitous.

[@ripwednesdayadams]

Yeah, tiktok and other social media apps feel like a constant onslaught of ads. Even the content that isn’t truly an ad still promotes something.

[@dantesdiscoinfernolol]

One of my Roman Empires is the fact that the "seashell" that is described in Fahrenheit 451 as dystopian device the main character's wife has on all the time to play music and noise - all interspersed with advertisements - is a near 1-for-1 description of my Bluetooth earpiece I use to listen to YT almost all the time.

[@leonoravincent2710]

Learned a new word today. Ubiquitous😅🔥

[@lizzyblitz07]

It's becoming as insidious as lottery ticket vending machines at the entrance of every grocery store, gas station, and even the FREAKING DMV. Stuff like this, making *sure* people with addiction, executive dysfunction, impulse control, etc are unable to protect themselves needs to be illegal.

[@lisahoshowsky4251]

My parents have cable tv still and imagine my shock and horror when I went to watch jeopardy and there’s literally “pop up” ads playing during the show!! To the point it blocks out info on the screen. Or some of them minimize the show to run an ad banner on the bottom and side. I don’t know what they’re paying but I know my father complains about it, and they’re getting adds during a show now, not just on a commercial break. It’s one of the most dystopian things I’ve experienced recently. There’s literally no escaping ads.

[@Solinaru]

YT,Twitter, Instagram: We're pivoting to Tiktok style of content. tiktok: we're pivoting to Temu

[@aksez2u]

😁

[@wplants9793]

This… I was just thinking that maybe TT is scanning and IDing all those products so they can sell the info to places like Temu

[@marylandj3228]

😂😂😢😂

[@Syntox]

PIN THIS COMMENT.

[@Nersius]

Half my ads on KZbin are Temu, the other half are Prageru. Please show me a car that I'll never be able to afford or something, please.

[@robertoXCX]

I'm so done with TikTok shop that my strategy is simple. Orange square? SKIP! Don't care who you are or what you're selling, I'm skipping. Same thing applies to sponsored and promoted tags.

[@anthropomorphicpeanut6160]

Wouldn't it be more effective to just delete the app? It's a time waster

[@troglodytee]

i do this too and it keeps me off the app for longer periods of time so its a blessing and a curse

[@thepeopleslast2579]

Same and the "not interested" button. I've basically purged my page from ads and the shop

[@SW-zb6bf]

Humble brag, but I just never used it and stick to youtubers giving me the tea

[@madz1751]

my solution was to delete it

[@tbszach]

youtube shorts feels like when i was a kid and i didn’t have cable anymore and i had to switch through the same 13 local channels

[@heyimneverland8451]

REAL😭😭

[@marylandj3228]

Omg yes lol

[@gardenvariety1]

YES LMAO. i guess a hidden benefit i got from deleting tiktok and just using YT is that the shorts here are so boring i’ve basically stopped watching short form content all together

[@pay1370]

For real, the same fucking clickbait and ragebait over and over again i hate it so much

[@candy2325]

Lmaooo 😂

[@DeemoandPuff]

getting rid of tiktok and just relying on youtube to tell me all the drama was the best choice i ever made

[@nemonobody88]

I still have tiktok but I prefer YT. It feels more...grown-up? If you understand what I'm saying. That being said, I understand the appeal to younger audience. Younger people just don't like long form content. And I find longer content more in-depth and more valuable.

[@gardenvariety1]

@@nemonobody88i 100% understand what your saying. i would see the craziest comments from like 15 year olds and that’s what made me finally realize that app is just not for me

[@Feverm00n]

@@gardenvariety1 honestly I feel like it would be good for there to be platforms specifically for teens provided it could be done well.

[@nemonobody88]

@@gardenvariety1 thank you! Also, I do enjoy some TT content but from what I'm seeing, the algorithm is kind to me as I have no idea what is happening to some gen z content people... It feels like I'm out of touch but the truth is... I get the content I am looking for.

[@nemonobody88]

@@Feverm00n this would have to be heavily curated... In my opinion.

[@generalgravy]

Sort of related, but did anyone else notice that temu’s ad ran like 6 times in the superbowl? We’re in hell

[@ninas8210]

did not watch the Superbowl tbh but damn that's fucked....the moment I kept getting the temu ads that say "shop like a billionaire" , i already figured where this was gonna go

[@aluna1234]

I heard Temu sponsored the superbowl this year

[@the.sapling]

ooh ooh temu 🕺😣

[@tamara10]

The real hell is a sports event being turned into a running a bunch of commercials event

[@hiddenabyss2142]

Idk who would ever allow that when they literally steal all your info and have lawsuits against them??? Then they promote temu on the SUPERBOWL?? For even more people to get their info stolen

[@tammyshields1172]

tiktok is just a different format of those pop up ads on early 2000s computers - shoving ads in your face interrupting your feed with the possibility of being scammed.

[@candy2325]

Ahhh the old days 😅

[@manboy4720]

@ville__ your hard drive would be very interesting to some people in the government.

[@manboy4720]

but the ad said that i could bang hot muslim women in my local area! i knew it was too good to be true.

[@jordanpowell2242]

@@manboy4720he said this twice under another comment, his hard drive is a gold mine to the Feds

[@jordanpowell2242]

Hated those, couldn’t go two seconds without an aid the only plus was if you got a virus or hacked you kinda of knew it based on all the pop-ups you got.

[@milquetoasty__]

I fully uninstalled Tiktok from my phone. It has turned into nothing but ads and MLM bullshit. People say "That's YOUR FEED!!" but I intentionally skip/block/etc that content and it comes back x10

[@augustoof13]

I wonder if blocking/skipping it makes it show up more?? I mean I’m not on TikTok so I have no idea but my sister is, she doesn’t block anything shop related and I asked her, she said that she doesn’t get a ton of ads. But I really have no idea lol take this with a grain of salt

[@MixerRenegade95]

You ok? that was OP's comment verbatim.@ville__

[@manboy4720]

@@augustoof13 i dunno, you might be onto something there...

[@Romanticoutlaw]

my android phone periodically prompts me to install it with their store app which I can't turn off notifications for and it's maddening

[@KittyMcQueenFluffinsteen]

​@@augustoof13 I don't get a lot of ads on my TT but I also spend more time on the learning/stem side so I guess ymmv

[@heyitssherri175]

"I assumed that people would start learning" Amanda, you've been on the internet long enough to know better than that.

[@reallyrealraven]

She also loves to lecture people so

[@reallyrealraven]

Her own followers lol. Paid promotions to lecture people lmao

[@triplesixcrow]

⁠@@reallyrealravenshe’s great at it! i’d let her lecture me in real life even if I felt personally attacked 😂 at least it’s not a paid promotion to shill out incredibly cheaply made products that only exist due to child labor

[@bchin4005]

Tiktok is destroying itself? I love problems that solve themselves.

[@ariessunbabe]

Dont’cha love when the trash takes itself out?

[@citrusbutter7718]

Hear hear. I swear i feel an amorism coming on every time i'm reminded of that stupid website.

[@triplesixcrow]

@@citrusbutter7718aneurysm (sorry I had to ily bae)

[@davidpachecogarcia]

I am SICK of being sold to. Apparently everyone is a salesperson now. It’s part of the reason I stopped watching television and movies. And Tik tok is my last resort for looking up reviews for items I’m interested in buying. I get my entertainment outside of social media.

[@Ava-Jule]

Reddit remains the most reliable source of reviews imo

[@davidpachecogarcia]

@@Ava-Jule oh Reddit is way before I have to stoop down to tik tok.

[@SanaChama]

​@Ava-pd1bh unfortunately reddit is becoming less and less reliable as well. The guerilla marketing is so pervasive now that I have to check every user's post history to make sure they're not spouting ads. It's a 50/50 shot if they are.

[@Moony1568]

I don’t get why you would stop watching movies and tv shows though. Unless you’re watching cable or streaming with ads, you won’t be bombarded by ads watching movies and such if you stick with physical media. (Well you do get those ads in the beginning before you get to the play screen on older dvds but you can skip those).

[@vanessamartin5515]

@@jsjsjjdjdjs8909 You know we've entered an alternate universe when tumblr is the healthy social media platform

[@Sunzu49]

The fact that UMG demanded to remove all of their songs on there, thus, muting over a thousand, if not more videos, is definitely a contribution.

[@markigirl2757]

they got to make their money back or they cant keep selling records for yearly profits LOL

[@lunayen]

I don't have or want tiktok, but I do relate to the pinterest problem where almost everything is an ad now. It's mentally exhausting.

[@E_MZ_]

It’s so annoying when I want to add an image to my board and it’s a Wayfair or Amazon link

[@samanthatownley5305]

The wildest thing was on one of my favorite creators who does “you don’t need it” style content got a “find similar items” banner slapped on there. Its literally the opposite of her content

[@Hyperdeath.Kisses]

The idea of TikTok automatically identifying items from their videos is FUCKING terrifying considering if they’re able to detect products, what else can they detect and where the hell is that information going? Could they identify other people and tag them in a video? Could they identify locations and tag that too?

[@ilikesmosh101]

Hate to break it to you but google and meta do this too

[@vvitch-mist20]

I mean it's probably just scanning room they are in for noticeable brands labels. People have brands almost everywhere in their house these days.

[@kateirving4489]

Facebook used to identify who was in your photos and automatically tag them, been around for a long time :(

[@houndgirl7365]

...every platform has done this unless you have developed the skill to mute the access noise (aka ads) when scrolling, but talk about an object and guaranteed those items are pushed via ads same goes for simply googling something.

[@meowJACK]

They can detect so many things. Practically anything you could think of. And it's not just tiktok. Google, Meta, Apple, they all do it. For years now already I've been able to go to my photos and type "cat" and it can pull up every photo I've ever taken or saved of a cat. They know everything that's in your photos. Useful but also pretty creepy

[@leahxrose_edits]

I've noticed a lot of the ads on twitter for products lately always get a community note mentioning how it's dropping shipping and they are scamming you haha I love it.

[@augustoof13]

Community notes is probably the best thing that ever happened to twitter imo. It’s so funny sometimes but pretty accurate info wise

[@cursedcontent4207]

@@augustoof13 Community notes is such a good feature I'm genuinely surprised it hasn't been deleted.

[@Killcupidsaaki17]

The loss of a huge part of their music library is a big deal too. Lots of artists used to use tik tok for promo and it started off AS A MUSIC APP. Their Logo is a music note for fricks sake. Like, wth is happening???

[@antwon8902]

I like how not too long ago people on KZbin would get dragged for promoting a Product and say "you're being paid to say good thing about it I don't trust you" and we've come to a point where people start believing every single thing now without thinking. Tik Tok shop products are rarely ever criticized and always talked highly about and even though people are aware that the person they are watching is being paid to endorse the product they don't bat an eye.

[@dillpickle-no9hl]

I feel like the reason why they get away with it is because most things on tiktok shop are dirt cheap. Since temu and wish have become popular, I feel like society has really begun to normalize scams, drop shipping, and cheap shitty products. I think people that review and promote tiktok shop products are just impressed that they didn't get scammed, or they have a "well the product kind of sucks, but I only spent a few dollars on it so it's not worth complaining" mindset. Like the reality is that a lot of people would rather just buy something and risk losing a few dollars if it's poor quality than put in the time and effort to research the product and consider people's biases for promoting it.

[@antwon8902]

@@dillpickle-no9hl the strange thing is though is how badly the price always fluctuates like people will be like "oh I got it for $10 and shipping was $20" or and then another would be like "what? I got it for $15?!"

[@sunnyandthechlo]

I remember when people would get dragged in the comments for taking a sponsorship. And now almost every video I see has a sponsorship. People used to try to hide the fact that they were getting paid to promote something because everyone would accuse them of selling out.

[@thatrantinggirl7376]

I wouldn’t say uncriticized, there’s a whole genre of tiktoks that focus on making fun of viral tiktok products and talking about how wasteful they are

[@the.sapling]

@@sunnyandthechlo I still see creators get told off for accepting certain sponsors. also,, I’m pretty wary of sponsored videos and creators that have sponsors for EVERY video.

[@SloMoMonday]

The auto-store feature sort of remind me of the TShirt Bots. For a while on Art KZbin, there were plenty of people and bots that would look for phrases like "this should be on a shirt" or "I need this on a coffee mug". They would rip the finished artwork from the video, slap it on a shirt and spam the comments with links. It was particularly scummy when the artist could not merchandise the art because of copyright. If TikTok Shop is going to allow counterfeit goods from almost anyone, it feels like a matter of time before Disney or Nintendo get ripped off. I just hope they go after the platform and sellers, not the content creators.

[@Sintanity]

This is still a huge problem on twitter also :/

[@ghoulchan7525]

i do love the fact people weaponised that phrase on twitter though XD. basically they would intentionally target Disney pics.

[@julianlaresch6266]

On the other hand a guaranteed way to force those sites down is to post copyrighted work with "I want this on a shirt"

[@kiricappuchin]

​@@ghoulchan7525 The funniest way I've seen people annoy others on Twitter is to spam a bunch of keywords under their tweet so the bots will come out from the depths and start flooding their notifications. Like, Person A says something dumb and Person B replies something like "i need help with my essay metamask trust wallet nft stolen ratio got scammed link in bio" and it summons the horde

[@twotruckslyrics]

oh those tshirt bots take me back

[@ky_piece]

I’m honestly surprised TikTok has lasted as long as it has been. After quarantine I thought it’d disappear…boy was I wrong 💀

[@bitchlasagna1]

I joined tik tok before it was “cool” and everyone said it would die back then. this thing is too powerful, it’s not going away

[@amethyst0ne]

i made an account in 2018 and my dumbass really thought it wasn't going anywhere, gave up in 2019 and haven't used it since. never been so wrong in my life about an app

[@dizzykitteh]

​@@bitchlasagna1 i thought it'd die when it switched to BEING tiktok... clearly not

[@heyimneverland8451]

@@dizzykittehthis is so real everyone else did too😭😭😭

[@icp7201]

The era of tech products, apps and sites not being able to generate profit for years on end is over. Now with the interest rate going way up all over the world, the pressure from investors for these companies to make money is much greater. That's exactly why, for example, Uber has been squeezing their drivers so hard this last year. Because they wanted to be able to show, in these last published results, a capacity to generate profit consistently. They all are trying to monetize their platforms and products now that they can't borrow money at 0%(or sometimes even negative) interest rates.

[@sunnyandthechlo]

I keep finding more and more reasons to congratulate myself for never downloading tiktok in the first place. But especially after someone told me that my brother in law sits and scrolls on it for hours at a time. He has two small children and I find it really strange to imagine my mom just sitting and scrolling on her phone when I was a kid. We didn't even have cell phones back then.

[@capri_bee]

I miss the old tiktok so much, when the most you would get for “ads” was reminder videos to take a break. I’ve definitely stopped using tiktok as much because of the ads specifically. I’ve opted to try practice being more present and offline as a result, which has been a big win for me. And saving money from refusing to use their platform for buying goods.

[@rVnsunshine]

Me too. Ultimately this was the push I needed to abandon the app, but I remember the good old days.

[@buckyyyb]

I remember those ads too! Very wholesome. Now it just sounds like a nightmare

[@CreateAmazment]

Between tiktok shop and the advertisers who try and disguise their ads as normal tiktoks, I'm *this* close to deleting the app. I had 5 videos earlier back to back, tiktok shop, ad, shop, shop, shop. I feel like every time I click "not interested" on one, 3 more rise up to take it's place.

[@kingworm7168]

Delete it. Be free.

[@kati8971]

i deleted tiktok about a year ago now and let me tell you life is so much better. do yourself a favor and delete it.

[@Fanrose2475]

Life is not so much better​@@kati8971

[@marylandj3228]

When they tried to disguise the brand as a regular tik tok I'm still not buying it lol😂

[@dillpickle-no9hl]

same. for the past few months ive only been getting tiktok shop content about one specific product and seeing like 50 ads a day that are all for the exact same thing is wayyyy to dystopian for me

[@lunarb00ts3]

This whole TikTok shop drama is so bizarre to hear about as someone from Australia who doesn't have the feature. It feels insanely dystopian

[@Leo-sd3jt]

UMG going after music on TikTok is the same thing that ended music videos on MTV. What hurt album sales back in the day wasn't file sharing but charging $20+ for a cd and that the music companies all went after all the ways people heard about new music. They went after radio stations, jukeboxes, etc. It's insane. Killing off their industry in pursuit of short term profits.

[@moonflower1616]

This is like if you're playing an MMO and everyone decided to be a shop keeper. Inevitably, it's not sustainable. If everyone is selling, then who's buying? Remove yourself from the equation. The app can't exist without feeding on the users. Vote with your time and your dollar.

[@SilverDragonJay]

eh, not a great comparison. The sellers can also be buyers in this case since the variety of items being sold is vast. One person might be selling a knock off purse while another is selling diet supplements and another is selling a bottle. There is no reason why they can't all sell to one another, though eventually the money in that system will dry up (assuming they don't have other sources of income). There could be enough money for it to self perpetuate for a while though eventually someone is going to have to do _something_ that actually produces value.

[@pinkdarkman]

​@@SilverDragonJay Reminds me of an episode of My Gym Partners a Monkey where they have to sell chocolate bars for school. Two characters buy all of eachother's chocolate bars by just passing a dollar bill back and forth and exchanging it for eachother's chocolate. At the end, they've both sold all of their chocolate, but they still only have the single dollar.

[@faramirbutnothatone]

I feel like an underrated question about tiktok shop is where are these items coming from? Who's making that knockoff stanley or dropshipped item? What are their labor conditions like? How much are they getting paid? Cause if something only costs a few dollars, how much of that is really going to labor? And like I know this is a problem with capitalism at large, but I think with the potential growth of this kind of low quality consumerism, we need to be talking about where these items come from and where they end up.

[@augustoof13]

This is a very important question to ask, I didn’t even think about it for some reason. People in even big name brand productions (i.e Nike) get screwed over and have to do terrible long labor, I don’t even know what those really cheap items workers would be under, condition wise.

[@carlasghost656]

Where is it made? China How much are the workers being paid? Did you not see "China"? What are the working conditions? See above answer.

[@SilverDragonJay]

We already know. Its just that people have gotten so used to China being a gigantic factory that they don't care. People in first world countries are used to just having everything available with 2-day shipping and its going to be really hard to convince them to give that up when the harm is not immediately in their face. We live in a dystopia. Literally. YA books have completely ruined the idea of a dystopia in the general consciousness. Shop local, people. Support small businesses. Exercise patience by selecting 5-7 day shipping.

[@tamara10]

People who shop online and are used to Amazon shipping their items overnight don't care about the ethics of the stuff they're buying

[@Zombiebuhada]

Most likely AliExpress lol

[@lilkiki141]

TikTok is actively causing me to avoid certain products that I normally would buy if I saw it out at a market or something. No joke, now I would rather use sandpaper than get an African net sponge! Not due to the merit of the product, but purely because it shows up after every other video I watch. When tiktok shop first started I thought it was cute that I was seeing users/small businesses I already followed more easily sell there products, but just like everything else the corporations have to ruin a good time. Streaming is trying to bring back cable, and social media wants to bring back QVC.

[@stevendorries]

Actual QVC is a gem, TikTok Shop is garbage

[@shannonceleste5557]

I would recommend taking a break from TikTok. Enjoy going out into the world and if you happen upon a small business that you’d like to support with your patronage- great! Support your local shops- most if not all TikTok ads aren’t actually supporting legitimate African communities for that net sponge, for example

[@lilkiki141]

​@@shannonceleste5557 I'm assuming you mean well, but it's a bit insulting to imply in your comment that I do not go out into the world, especially since I mentioned going to markets. I'm one of those who watch KZbin either while working/ doing chores. I'm a small business owner with many friends and relatives who vend at markets and/or conventions (my brother-in-law actually recently went viral for a caricature drawing he did at someone's work event). I started watching Swell because she was reviewing events and conventions, a scene I have been an active part of since 2015. I spend maybe an hour or 2 on TikTok in an entire week, so when every other short vid is a QVC wannabe it's annoying because it wastes my very limited active screen time. Like I said, when I first encountered TikTok shop it was through small business pages I already followed because I had already consumed their goods in the past, a lot at markets and conventions. But to add to your last sentiment, I agree that many of the ads are probably some sort of counterfeit and/or drop-shippers now. However, this is happening at events and conventions as well. I've noticed that MLM and AliExpress products have invaded markets and crafts events. The amount of AliExpress sellers were especially egregious at my local RenFaire this year.

[@lilkiki141]

@@shannonceleste5557 i'm sure you mean well, but it's a bit insulting to imply in your comment that I do not go out into the world, especially since I mentioned going to markets. I'm one of those that listens to youtube vids while working. I am a small business owner with many friends and relatives that vend at markets and conventions (my brother-in-law actually recently went viral for a caricature drawing he did at a someone's work event). I started watching Swell because she was reviewing conventions, a scene I have been an active part in since 2015. Like I said, my first exposure to TikTok shop was through small businesses I already followed because I had consumed their goods in the past, many directly at markets and conventions. I spend maybe an hour or 2 on TikTok in an entire week, so when every other short vid is a QVC wannabe it's annoying because it wastes my very limited active screen time. As for your last sentiment I agree that the vast majority of ads are drop-shippers/AliExpress sellers now. However this is now bleeding into the real world as well. MLMs and AliExpress resellers have invaded many events, markets, and conventions. The amount of AliExpress sellers was especially egregious at my local RenFaire this year.

[@lilkiki141]

@@shannonceleste5557 my reply to you seems to keep disappearing on my end so if you all of a sudden get multiple notifications I'm sorry about that. I'm mainly sending this one as a test. Edit: This one seems to have gotten through so I'll add my thoughts here. I'm sure you mean well, but it's a bit rude to imply that I do not go out into the real world, especially since I mentioned going to markets. I'm one of those people that watch youtube in the background while working. I am a small business owner and have many friends and family that sell at conventions/markets. My brother-in-law actually recently went viral for a caricature drawing he did at someone's work event. I have been an active member of the convention scene since 2015. My first exposure to tiktokshop was through people I already followed because I had consumed their goods in the past, many from conventions and events. I started watching Swell because of here event reviews. I spend maybe an hour or 2 on TikTok in an entire week, so when every other short vid is a QVC wannabe it's annoying because it wastes my very limited active screen time. To add to your last sentiment though, yeah I agree that most ads are probably some sort of drop-shipper now. However, this is bleeding into the real world too. I have recently witnessed an invasion of markets/events/conventions by MLMs and AliExpress resellers. The amount of resellers was particularly egregious at my local RenFaire this year.

[@zeriah]

My FYP feed has been going downhill so fast recently. Usually it'll go: Something I want to watch -> Random garbage that I don't want to see (but not an ad) -> TikTok Shop ad -> TikTok Shop Ad -> Actual ad -> TikTok Live (usually also someone who is running a shopping channel live for some MLM scheme) -> One more good TikTok. Rinse and repeat.

[@scarletkittyeyes]

never have i been more glad to not be on TikTok. i HATE ads

[@citrusbutter7718]

I just hate tiktok.

[@aloeabbie]

I always had a bad screen problem when I had tiktok, but i didn't want to delete it because it was entertaining. I deleted tiktok in Octoberish (once they started really pushing the shop) because the ads made it boring. I'm not surprised that they shot themselves in the foot.

[@Befevered]

My TikTok is geolocked to Canada (it’s based on where you are/were for the past 150 days) so I am experiencing the pure bliss of TikTok without TikTok Shop. I’m terrified of it and fearing the day it appears. 😅

[@Ghostfrogdraws]

Ive noticed a lot of creators I like from tik tok have started to pivot to instagram reels and youtube shorts which I find much more palatable so I finally deleted the app and I honestly do not miss it at all.

[@Emh19]

I don't think we even have TikTok shop here in Australia, or if we do they have never shown any to me.

[@SwellEntertainment]

its my understanding its not allowed in multiple companies because of various regulations

[@Emh19]

That would make sense, way stricter rules here

[@heartiko2681]

We have it in the UK but it's not as aggressive as this video in my experience, I wonder if in the UK we also have some laws limiting it

[@lizzyblitz07]

​​@@SwellEntertainment I would love if you'd do a video discussing these regulations, why they exist, and possibly a call to action about raising awareness/calling for regulations in the U.S. If lawmakers wanted to ban tiktok, they should at least be willing to protect us from it's insidious practices. (They should be pressured to ban these practices on all apps, but there's a particularly compelling hypocrisy of not regulating the app they already all tried to banish).

[@brigidm6712]

I was going to say, as an Australian I've never ever seen anything to do with tiktok shop on the app

[@hypotheticaltapeworm]

I'm not on TikTok but I never expected it to have the staying power of KZbin. I think it's an issue with the short-form style of content. On KZbin, you can't really make a channel work if you're just making low-effort ads for bootleg products. TT algorithm will push these videos on people's fyp and chumps will take the bait. On KZbin, nobody will care. Individual channels matter way more in the overall experience, the identity of the KZbinr is more important to the experience of their content. TT actively promotes relative anonymity. Videos are usually seen once and swiped away. KZbin has ads (not to some of us though) but it's not as insidious as incentivizing creators to make their own commercials. Ads are a nuisance, not something people will seek.

[@foxxxyg]

I am not on tiktok but I especially wont be now since every 3rd youtube ad I get is for an ad on tiktok. Advertisements of advertisements makes me irrationally emotional.

[@MajorTomSteelPhro]

For two weeks now like 10% of my entire FYP feed has been Tik Tok shop ads specifically for earwax cleaners

[@crazyowlgirlcncowner]

They're trying to tell you something

[@emchovy]

unrelated question. can you hear the shop ads.

[@crazyowlgirlcncowner]

@@emchovy LMAOOOO

[@citrusbutter7718]

@ville__ At least read the comments in the thread before posting...... This is truly a tiktok generation....

[@twotruckslyrics]

@@citrusbutter7718that is a bot, ignore it !!

[@lydiawood2458]

I got rid of tik tok about three years ago and every time you post about it, I thank myself for running when I did. Great video, Amanda!

[@webkinzcircus]

I was a "micro influencer" in the mental health space before tiktok shop, about a month and a half ago I officially quit because of all the issues

[@webkinzcircus]

I still go on & check out what people are doing on there from time to time but before tiktok shop I could easily clock 12+ hours on tiktok according to my iphone screen time, now I barely wanna spend an hour

[@RobinLecter]

So, given that TikTok is the international counterpart for Douyin, expect the consumerist aspect to get worse. In a few years from now they'll introduce money transfer features just like Douyin.

[@dillpickle-no9hl]

I didn't even think it was possible for an app to be even more of a consumerist hellscape than tiktok, now I'm scared

[@veronicamaine3813]

@ville__ and considering it’s coming from a communist country 😂

[@bogbody]

@@veronicamaine3813China is communist the same way the “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea” is a democracy

[@MaGpeS]

​@veronicamaine3813 China is communist when we are talking about their government, but it has a VERY capitalistic economy. There is a reason why the selling streamings are so popular there (even those streamers can turn into millioners). Actors, singers, family of famous people, or your neighbors are trying to selling something with their lives.

[@NotQuiteDeadYet4]

It’s really disheartening because so many artists have fallen into the tiktok shop trap with those stupid grabi acrylic markers or the ohuhu(?) alcohol markers, it feels like all the art content I get is an ad. It makes art, something so human and emotional, feel so corporate and insincere.

[@Kipasaur]

Gotta say Ohuhu is actually pretty good. Have some myself after trying some of my younger cousin's markers. Then saw Jazza use them against Copic. Considering how expensive Copic is, Ohuhu is genuinely a good choice if you can't afford Copics. Otherwise the other alcohol markers I get suggested from social media and on Amazon are suspicious for sure.

[@houndgirl7365]

Welcome to normal TV gone digitized. You think KZbin always had commercials? No they slowly added it in until we are at the point we are at now. Everything is monetized in some way, yet funny enough people went to online for watchable content because of how long and annoying commercials were that and the obscene costs which are now being transferred to online platforms with the addition of subscription services to everything.

[@ghoulchan7525]

there's many white label versions of alcohol markers. they are usual black with a colored tip. also it's the same with Art youtube. it's usually sponsored.

[@meganjaime7728]

@@Kipasaur I have watched an artist on KZbin for a while (before trying to sell via affiliate links became a thing) and she used Ohuhu a lot. She just used them she didn’t mention what they were either. I had to figure out on my own what kind of marker it was. Later on she mentioned what they were as a response to people asking but that’s different, people were asking and so she said what they were. I also saw the Jazza video, very informative in my opinion. I only gave a couple of COPIC and they are expensive. After seeing how they compare I have considered getting a couple ohuhu as they are more affordable. I don’t use alcohol markers a whole lot though so I still haven’t really been purchasing a bunch of these pens (either brand). I guess im trying to say that there are people out there who aren’t trying to sell you products and also that the Ohuhu markers are a good product. 😄😊

[@donthavetowritemealetter]

⁠​⁠@@ghoulchan7525yea idk why people are up in arms about sponsors in youtube videos. how else do you except creators to make high quality content consistently? just skip it or tune it out in your head. i for one am glad that they’re getting paid 🤷‍♂️

[@MlleLowis]

I have uninstalled Tiktok since 2021 because it was making my life worse - i was well entertained but having to peel my face off an app is horrendous especially with ADD. I thought KZbin and Facebook were bad (IG catching then up soon) but hell with TikTok. Big YIKES

[@JJ2023.]

I haven't opened tiktok in 2 weeks , fed up with the constant battling/begging and selling cheap crap .

[@plumhearted]

for me a big reason why tiktok is losing my attention is the abundance of ads... it'll literally be 1-2 ads/sponsored content every 4 videos, its insane?? meanwhile ig reels i'll get like an ad every 20 vids. also, with this many ads and everything going on in the world rn... who is actually buying things off of tt shop and ads?!? HUH

[@verynormalgf]

we don't have tiktok shop in Canada and I am SO THANKFUL. my tiktok experience is getting worse (more ads, more lives shoved on my feed, more sponsored posts) but hasn't been overrun by tiktok shop crap at least.

[@drumblebee]

i miss when tiktok was full of people who did interesting shit and just didnt have the time to commit to long form content. i think one page was donegal homestead? she was my absolute fave, she makes soap from tallow and does vids about how she renders tallow from fat and then does the actual saponification with the tallow. i hope shes thriving rn.

[@Unhingeddirtdog]

Tiktok and instagram overwhelm me like crazy I avoid them both like the plague 😭

[@IamTMichelle1]

I definitely blocked anything on TikTok regarding the shops because I don't buy things from social media apps. If I happen to see something, I go to the source and check it out. If I'm here on YT, I may click affiliate links because I like the creator and I want to support. But TikTok is for scrolling, and the push for shops has certainly made me scroll IG reels much more.

[@Taelove122]

The final straw for me was going on tiktok and the ONLY thing on my fyp is lives of people selling stuff (mainly wigs & clothes) and ad after ad after ad. It wasn't just one day either. No, this was every single day for 2 weeks and is still happening. I sat there and counted how many lives and ads I had to scroll past to get to an actual video from someone that isn't trying to sell or promote something. 20. twenty lives and ads of people selling stuff. I'm done with tiktok.

[@jaimeerindy4573]

TikTok sounded like such a bad & sketchy idea the second it was announced. I don't use and have never used TikTok, because this was always the endgame in some way

[@jacobmtcastle5741]

I deleted TikTok a little over a year ago because it was not great for my mental health. Everything I’ve heard about the app since has made me glad I left!

[@starthatrots]

I actually deleted TikTok a few weeks ago after getting fed up with all the ads and also because I would wrack up 10+ hours of screen time a day. I'm neurodivergent and have developed worsening memory issues from constant use of the app (sitting mindlessly scrolling for hours on end). Not to sound like a boomer, but it honestly became a bit of an addiction and I had to cut it all off cold turkey. Since then, I've been improving a lot in terms of my attention span. I had TikTok downloaded since it came out and have always loved it but in more recent years (especially after 2020) it's just become a breeding ground of who can be more viral and sell more shit. So, yeah, glad I got rid of it and I think we'd all be better off without such an app especially with the state it's coming to recently.

[@localmenace3043]

Advertising has become a curse. Everyone and everything has something to push at you nowadays. It’s _exhausting._ I miss the early 2000’s internet so much.

[@Paradox_Incognito]

It's approaching 1 year since I quit using tiktok and deleted the app and I'm so glad I bailed before the shop

[@clownfromclowntown]

As someone who has never, ever used tiktok watching the evolution of commentary around it has certainly been...something. It's like getting a real time rundown of all the drama happening at the crackhouse turned dropshipping front down the road which seemingly everybody else goes to

[@stevendorries]

I’ve never had TikTok and I don’t think I ever will. For some reason KZbin decided that this video needed 15 unskipable midroll ads, I wonder why it decided that

[@jennteal5265]

Use an ad-block... YT has become unwatchable without one.

[@TheSteve94]

as someone who has paid money to make ads go away i cannot stand constantly being sold to on the clock app. especially when i know my lifetime value to them has to be like a couple dollars, its insane that they havent even considered offering an ad free upgrade that would net them the same revenue in a single month.

[@BananaGeekLord]

I stopped getting on there as much, and I will block pages trying to sell me a lot of things. It's yet another example of how things could be great, but it turns to shit really quickly. Like I buy things off of Etsy a decent amount, but even on the site dedicated to buying things from people who make those things, there's drop shipping on there as well. It's pretty much every website. So while I don't mind as much when ots people advertising themselves, it does get old seeing all the drop shipping. I have unfollowed people because they moved so much into the shop. I am over it. If they go through with the idea of making every video a shop because it recognizes items, I'm just gonna uninstall the app.

[@augustoof13]

I know! Etsy has so much “handmade” stuff that’s actually cheap crap that’s dropshipped. It’s such a shame, and they don’t do anything about it (probably because they make a lot of money that way.)

[@Angelaaahhh]

i quite literally used to spend hours on tik tok, maybe i grew out of it, but any time i go on tik tok these days, im bombarded with adverts, and it's so upsetting and boring, it genuinely makes me upset

[@JOman04]

i don't know if its because of the green wallpaper, but it looks like the red levels are cranked way up in this video.

[@bitchlasagna1]

i was wondering when Swell became a ginger

[@vidwitch1508]

Yeah I see it a bit- from an art standpoint tho this video is such a good art reference✨ the color contrast looks amazing to draw from a portrait perspective:))

[@octodaddy1602]

Lol yeah from the thumbnail I straight up thought swell was crying

[@benjisaac]

Someone stole this comment 4 hours later and got over twice as many likes so far, super weird to choose this one imo

[@jasonmacfarlund2703]

I thought it would just be the thumbnail

[@readbycandle7489]

The irony of KZbin putting a sponsored ad for drop shipping tutorial attached to this video for me

[@Iquey]

Hhhh... I already have things yesterday. It's called stuff i already bought. Too much consumerism online. I don't think it's normal for our brains to have numerous products on our minds, upwards of 100+ new types of things to buy in a week.

[@alysonw5371]

I fully agree with what you're saying. But to ignore that KZbin has the same type of creators promoting the same companies and products for two weeks at a time, at the same time is silly. Like 10 creators I watch on KZbin always have the same promotion/ sponsor at the same time.

[@RelieaYuell]

I already didn't use TikTok, but I also already assume that almost everything online is trying to get me to buy something, so fundamentally nothing really changed. However, the platform itself turning otherwise unsponsored, innocuous discussion of product, or even presence of 'a product' in a video unrelated to the content of the video, into an ad without the creator's consent is wrong and scummy.

[@IronWangCreates]

The first 60 seconds of this video sounds like Amanda is TikTok’s teacher, at a parent teacher meeting, about to absolutely roast them

[@SI-FI_creations]

I don't like doing much with TikTok anymore for this very reason. I need it to promote my brand, but it's too exhausting. I'm shadowbanned pretty much. It's a whole mess. Not to mention the app is broken on my phone, and they refuse to fix it. They just keep closing the tickets. I think this is the start of the collapse.

[@LunaWitcherArt]

I have never in my life downloaded TikTok and you don't even know how HAPPY these videos make me. To me, Pinterest does it right, though they are overdoing it now - show me where I can actually BUY the pretty stuff that I ONLY SEE EVER on Pinterest. I'm already on Pinterest because of consumerism, might as well make my life easier. Oh, amazing combat boots! Oh, they are Daemonias and they cost an arm and a leg? Good to know! Oh, look at this cute mechanical keyboard - Oh, it's sold on a Japanese website that I don't even think ships internationally? Good to know! Oh, there is a store near me that actually sells things that fit my style? Incredible! Just don't freaking shove the same whiskey ad on my feed every 2 scrolls when I DON'T DRINK NOR WILL I EVER!

[@augustoof13]

I mostly use pinterest for memes, fandom stuff, art, etc. I agree with you heavily!

[@jahanarahgraham8003]

I’ve never had a screen problem with TikTok but I’ve definitely stopped using it as much since they’ve started pushing the shop. I was already getting annoyed because of how much they used to push livestreams and normal ads but once the shop started getting pushed I stopped using it. I’ll go on there every now and then to catch up on all of my fave creators or when I want to see edits of a show or movie I liked but even that’s stopped since the whole UMC thing.

[@2shotsofvodka965]

I’m in Germany and we don’t have TikTok shop yet. Still the amounts of covert ads I get is starting to get ridiculous; those "don’t walk but run" videos. So far I’ve been able to steer my fyp away from it whenever it went too far off the deep end, but I’m pretty sure it’s probably just a question of time until we also get those orange squares. It’s actually quite insane how TikTok (and most of the internet really) is slowly turning to the equivalent of a catalogue to buy stuff.

[@blacklotus4405]

Ive been spending less and less time on TikTok and my mental health has improved greatly... It was such a fun app to express myself as well as finding like-minded interesting individuals, but its become so unhinged, hateful, and stress inducing, i dont even use the app anymore.. I always end up back here anyway. YT is my forever home lol

[@virtual_fairy]

one of the most egregious ads i saw for tiktok shop was a review of several items that "i wish i could play with but i can't cus i'm not a kid." he started out reviewing those abacus things from the drs office, and then the second item was one of those tiktok shop stim toys. tricked my ass. dirty.

[@Notion_Hoarder]

I got an add about a doctor trying to warn kids about drunk driving on TikTok and how TikTok is “good” before this video.

[@ultimomos5918]

I work for the company. Tiktok will monetize itself out of existence. They want so SO bad to be Temu. Also if you think they dont pay content creators, they dont pay the actual employees any better.

[@BukeyBoy]

Can you make a video about how Etsy isn’t about small businesses anymore? It’s become another Amazon, with the bigger shops that sell cheap stuff that’s definitely mass produced

[@CMarieMuse]

As a rule I simply don't shop on a platform not made for shopping?? Even if I saw something I did want on tiktok, I'd look on Amazon or elsewhere for the product because even at a base level I don't trust tiktok with my financial information

[@LONELYSTARURBEX]

as somebody who doesn’t use tiktok at all and hasn’t in over 3 years, i truly salute amanda for her investigative journalism into all the shenanigans on that app over the years (of course, So We Don’t Have To). godspeed Swell. you’re a brave soul

[@stickysteph]

idk, I think you might be underestimating the enjoyment alot of people get out of these videos. i.e. all the skincare routine videos with 35 different products. People eat it up. They trust their influencers of choice and go to them for recommendations. I have found myself going to tiktok specifically for product reviews before choosing to buy something. I have seen a lot of consumers lately actually liking the fact that they can buy usually at a discount on the app....Also TOTALLY agree about UMG, like wth were they thinking? There's a band that literally blew up BECAUSE of tiktok. It's wild

[@auggiedoggiesmommy1734]

Stanley didn’t “admit” there’s lead in their cups (dear lord, I’m defending Stanley). They informed the public that all cups made in that process contain lead. That story was so overblown.

[@chobits0821]

Thank you!! Like, there's a bigger discussion of what using lead in a manufacturing process does to the environment, but everyone is acting like you will get lead poisoning from your Stanley cup. Or, they're ignoring the fact that all other vacuum sealed metal cups have the same issue! 🙃

[@Cloudy4Days]

Yeah isn't it in like, the bottom of something? A place that your beverage wouldn't be making contact with

[@flux3960]

swell you are the reason i have stuff to talk about at the weekly marketing meeting, thank you for your service

[@salcatart]

I’m so glad I’m not on tiktok… sometimes the KZbin shorts and insta reels gets me though..

[@PizzaPartyTime]

Honestly Universal pulling their music has been a hilarious blessing for my FYP. In no other situation would I be able to see Baldur's Gate 3 edits to Cbat. Or thirst traps set to classical music. It made it awesome. Also if I have to see one more "eligible for commission" TikTok where a pretty white girl is shouting about the VIRALLLLL whatever, I'm gonna lose my mind.

[@Iquey]

I really dont like the idea of TikTok's shop's AI spying on my stuff and tagging products to viewers. (Or worse, misidentifying what i own and suggesting some cheap knockoff of it) I WANT TO GATEKEEP SOMETIMES. .

[@WorldAccordingToBriggs]

I have had a butt load of people asking me to promote their Tik Tok shop sold items. It seems to have picked up steam in the last month or two.

[@lele9240]

As someone from a country where tik tok shop hasn't launched yet, this is wild to me😂

[@hulahoolahoo]

You’re so right! I CANT deal with tiktok live. 90% of them are people selling shit or the weirdest asmr shit I’ve ever seen

[@Lanier2369]

They're trying to make ticktock into a competitor to Amazon? Ya sure. I know one of the places I want to go to if I'm shopping around is a social media site/app... That's like calling your cell phone provider to order pizza... Lol. I know they want to get people already there to use the shop and I guess that COULD work, maybe someone sees an add for something to buy that they might be interested in as an impulse buy or at least have users be aware of the shop maybe. Butcto make ticktock a true competitor to Amazon will be such a mountain to climb which I don't think they can do. Unless they literally scrap the social/video side and make it into an Amazon/ebay/temu clone and even then will have a slightly less of a mountain to climb.

[@Annaa218]

I have definitely abandoned tiktok now that the whole platform feels like one big ad. I only open the app if someone sends me a tiktok to watch and thats it

[@kateconti93]

I no longer use TikTok, I get my short form content from YT and IG. I also have ad blocking plug-ins, which was the only thing that kept me from quitting Pinterest as well. Like many of us, I've been examining my online shopping habits. The heavy product pushing on TT was the final straw for me. I organically stopped using TT because I struggle with compulsive shopping as-is, and later saw your previous videos addressing it as a widespread phenomenon including counterfeit goods. Honestly, good riddance. YT and IG can easily fill the short-form-video-shaped hole in my heart, without the overwhelming privacy concerns and now saturated culture of selling. Not that Meta or Google have a great track record with privacy either, but they seem like the lesser evils compared to TT.

[@Bxr12]

I’ve never seen a tiktok shop video ever. Don’t know if it’s a setting or a regional thing (I’m in the Caribbean) but zero product TikToks. And glad for it!

[@liquidrufus]

Even though I'm an elder millennial. I always find Amanda's content to be engaging even when I don't have any prior knowledge of the topic.

[@vashtiwix9225]

I’ve had tik tok deleted for like a year…hearing where it is now is so dystopian

[@stevenm11920]

Every time I hear anything about TikTok now I’m so glad that I stopped using it like a year ago

[@majones117]

As I have gotten older, I have stopped shopping online, only texting people to talk to them, and stopped using social media. Seeing stuff like this tells me I have made the right decision.

[@t1dotaku]

Remember when the Internet used to the cooler way to watch media? Cause it was add free! It was unique! Now? Now it's just cable dialed up to 100. Ads everywhere. Same kind of content. Just wasting your time staring endlessly at the screen. Tiktok is ruining so much more than we thought.

[@hyperfixd_]

as European i got so confused when everyone started talking about tiktok shop, because that doesn't exist here, there's also less ads in general, from what i have gathered. (thanks EU

[@kaemincha]

litrally dont know how people watch TikTok Lives, they feel so... empty to me for some reason.

[@NIRDIAN1]

What really got me is someone TALKING TO THE CAMERA AND GETTING DUBBED WITH THE TIKTOK VOICE! I think that gave me an aneurysm...

[@princessyrachel]

Mother, we need a vid on the Patreon tea! Your silence was v loud

[@salmaamin530]

What is the patreon tea?

[@DieAlteistwiederda]

I'm not from the US so Tiktok shop is something I've heard of but not seen. Simply not available in Germany yet and honestly I'm very grateful for that. I can only take so much advertising before I will just log off forever

[@nightmime5810]

Every video I see is paid promotion and it pisses me off