TikTok is censoring videos uploaded with LGBTQ+ hashtags in nine languages, including Russian and Arabic, . In some countries that speak these languages homosexuality is illegal. Videos with these hashtags seem to be treated in the same way as those promoting ISIS, Nazism and the Ku Klux Klan.
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute, a Canberra-based think tank, has analysed the way TikTok handles content that contains hashtags related to sexual orientation or gender identity. It found that the words for 鈥済ay鈥� in Russian, Arabic, Estonian and Bosnian are all suppressed. The hashtag 鈥�#gayarab鈥� in English and the word 鈥渢ransgender鈥� in Arabic are similarly censored.
Users can post videos with these hashtags, but the videos aren鈥檛 visible when searching for those hashtags. This means viewers would have to specifically visit the uploader鈥檚 profile to see it, instead of being shown the video as part of normal TikTok browsing.
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In all, TikTok appears to not show videos using LGBTQ+ hashtags when searching for them in nine different languages, including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Kazakh and Kyrgyz.
When the researchers analysed the source code for TikTok鈥檚 website relating to those hashtags, they found that the hashtags are tagged with a reference that is also found on the hashtags #ISIS, #Nazi, #KKK and #cocaine in English. Videos with these hashtags are also suppressed on TikTok鈥檚 app and website in the same way.
The researchers also tried posting TikTok videos tagged with some of the hashtags and found they didn鈥檛 show up when searching for the hashtags.
Fergus Ryan, co-author of the report, says the censorship has wider repercussions, because TikTok limits access to videos for all speakers of a language, regardless of where they are based. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e a Russian speaker in the US, this is still affecting you,鈥� says Ryan.
He believes that TikTok鈥檚 approach to censorship is different to that of other social media platforms and is born out of its origin in China. TikTok is the international version of an app called Douyin, developed by TikTok鈥檚 parent company ByteDance.
TikTok told Ryan and his colleagues that some terms were 鈥減artially restricted due to relevant local laws鈥�. The company added that some phrases were 鈥渋ncorrectly moderated鈥� and it is conducting a review to avoid similar issues in the future.
鈥淭ikTok remains committed to creating a fun, authentic, and safe place for our users,鈥� a spokesperson told 快猫短视频. 鈥淲e are deeply committed to inclusivity and proud that content celebrating our diverse community is among the most popular on TikTok.鈥�
