00:00:30.034 --> 00:00:33.935
FEROZA:
TikTok was a new app.

00:00:34.069 --> 00:00:39.535
I knew millions of people
were downloading it by the day.

00:00:39.668 --> 00:00:42.602
And I just thought,
"I want to post on a platform

00:00:42.702 --> 00:00:46.768
where younger
generations are."

00:00:46.869 --> 00:00:49.335
Once I got into junior year
of high school,

00:00:49.435 --> 00:00:51.601
I was like, "Okay,
I'll give TikTok a try."

00:00:53.502 --> 00:00:56.435
I remember when I started
seeing views pile up

00:00:56.568 --> 00:00:58.834
in the thousands,
and hundred-thousands.

00:01:01.568 --> 00:01:03.235
I didn't know
I had this much power

00:01:03.335 --> 00:01:09.268
just because of me
putting my voice on an app.

00:01:09.335 --> 00:01:11.968
On TikTok,
anything can happen.

00:01:17.635 --> 00:01:20.535
♪ Watermelon sugar high

00:01:20.635 --> 00:01:23.168
♪ Watermelon sugar
high ♪

00:01:23.268 --> 00:01:24.434
♪ Watermelon sugar

00:01:24.567 --> 00:01:26.201
♪ Dream, dream, uh

00:01:26.301 --> 00:01:27.235
♪ Yeah

00:01:27.335 --> 00:01:28.968
♪ Listen to me now

00:01:29.068 --> 00:01:32.934
[beatboxing]

00:01:39.734 --> 00:01:42.535
I guess I'm on TikTok now.

00:01:42.668 --> 00:01:43.834
MAN: TikTok has
been downloaded

00:01:43.934 --> 00:01:45.101
more than two billion times,

00:01:45.201 --> 00:01:49.268
more than any app ever.

00:01:49.368 --> 00:01:51.702
GIRL: I think TikTok
right now is probably

00:01:51.802 --> 00:01:54.534
on the cutting edge
of all social media...

00:01:56.401 --> 00:01:59.101
and it is becoming
a world onto itself

00:01:59.168 --> 00:02:01.068
for a lot of people,

00:02:01.168 --> 00:02:02.934
especially young people.

00:02:04.768 --> 00:02:06.602
NEWSCASTER: TikTok is
the first Chinese app

00:02:06.668 --> 00:02:09.667
to threaten the dominance
of Silicon Valley.

00:02:11.468 --> 00:02:14.368
GIRL: It's
a cyber security story.

00:02:14.502 --> 00:02:17.268
It's an algorithm story.

00:02:17.368 --> 00:02:19.368
It's a bias story.

00:02:19.502 --> 00:02:20.901
It's a geopolitical story.

00:02:20.968 --> 00:02:24.001
...TikTok.
We may be banning TikTok.

00:02:24.134 --> 00:02:27.801
GIRL: It was bizarre
why when suddenly this

00:02:27.901 --> 00:02:30.201
kind of a fun
little kids app,

00:02:30.301 --> 00:02:31.535
become wrapped up

00:02:31.635 --> 00:02:33.868
in this huge
geopolitical storm

00:02:34.001 --> 00:02:36.767
between the US and China

00:02:36.868 --> 00:02:40.001
that was only
getting hotter.

00:02:43.235 --> 00:02:45.534
[sound of explosion]

00:02:45.634 --> 00:02:47.101
[electricity crackles]

00:02:47.201 --> 00:02:48.702
[car door closing]

00:02:48.802 --> 00:02:51.534
BOY: Fix your mirrors.
Put it in drive.

00:02:51.667 --> 00:02:53.901
FEROZA:
Put it in drive?

00:02:57.502 --> 00:03:00.834
So my family's
from Afghanistan.

00:03:00.934 --> 00:03:02.968
They were
just very grateful

00:03:03.068 --> 00:03:05.968
because they could finally
come here.

00:03:06.068 --> 00:03:08.468
They were just amazed
by the privileges

00:03:08.568 --> 00:03:10.034
that were being brought
to them.

00:03:10.134 --> 00:03:12.101
You didn't--you didn't
use your signal there.

00:03:12.235 --> 00:03:15.435
I did.
Oh, I thought I did.

00:03:15.502 --> 00:03:20.368
My parents,
their dreams of America

00:03:20.502 --> 00:03:23.068
were flourishing
before 9/11,

00:03:23.134 --> 00:03:26.502
and then once those planes
hit the towers,

00:03:26.602 --> 00:03:28.168
their dreams
were shattered too,

00:03:28.268 --> 00:03:32.300
because it was as if they
were responsible for that.

00:03:33.968 --> 00:03:36.335
Growing up
as an Afghan-American,

00:03:36.401 --> 00:03:37.767
it was really rough.

00:03:41.301 --> 00:03:44.034
I'll just have
a small amount.

00:03:44.134 --> 00:03:45.968
Yesterday, he was teaching me
how to drive.

00:03:46.034 --> 00:03:47.801
Every five seconds,
"Don't scratch my rims.

00:03:47.901 --> 00:03:49.535
Don't scratch my rims."
I'm like,

00:03:49.635 --> 00:03:52.502
I'm not gonna scratch your rims.
I know how to drive.

00:03:52.635 --> 00:03:54.434
The only times
where I feel like I belong

00:03:54.534 --> 00:03:56.435
is with my family.

00:03:56.502 --> 00:03:59.034
My cousins, my brother...

00:03:59.101 --> 00:04:01.134
I--I feel like I have
a place with them,

00:04:01.201 --> 00:04:05.734
because they understand
where I come from.

00:04:05.834 --> 00:04:07.468
How'd you make it look pretty?

00:04:07.602 --> 00:04:08.601
- Why?
- Like, it looks like

00:04:08.701 --> 00:04:10.367
a Instagram picture.

00:04:10.467 --> 00:04:11.901
We had to face

00:04:12.001 --> 00:04:15.001
growing up
as children of refugees

00:04:15.068 --> 00:04:18.467
in a country
that doesn't like refugees.

00:04:23.101 --> 00:04:25.467
And my school
isn't diverse at all.

00:04:27.735 --> 00:04:30.134
I don't feel
like I'm one of them.

00:04:30.235 --> 00:04:31.535
I don't think my classmates

00:04:31.635 --> 00:04:34.201
even think
that I'm one of them.

00:04:34.335 --> 00:04:36.368
I got called a terrorist.

00:04:36.468 --> 00:04:38.101
I got called Bin Laden.

00:04:38.168 --> 00:04:40.534
I've been called
a part of the Taliban,

00:04:40.634 --> 00:04:41.934
since I'm Afghan.

00:04:42.001 --> 00:04:43.734
I've been called
all these things.

00:04:46.168 --> 00:04:49.200
And I always felt
like an outsider.

00:04:55.368 --> 00:04:57.401
My mom made these two.

00:04:57.468 --> 00:05:01.502
I wore this dress on my TikTok.

00:05:01.568 --> 00:05:04.435
I have gone viral
a few times.

00:05:04.535 --> 00:05:06.934
It was my first time
posting on TikTok.

00:05:07.034 --> 00:05:10.268
It was like 40,000 views
I've gotten on it.

00:05:10.368 --> 00:05:13.969
And it was just me dancing
with my Afghan clothes on.

00:05:14.069 --> 00:05:17.635
The response was like amazing
because through TikTok

00:05:17.735 --> 00:05:19.568
I found
so many other Afghans,

00:05:19.668 --> 00:05:22.235
and so many
other Afghan-Americans.

00:05:22.335 --> 00:05:25.501
I never knew how big the
Afghan-American community was

00:05:25.634 --> 00:05:27.835
'til I joined TikTok

00:05:27.902 --> 00:05:30.567
and I've seen more people
accepting me for who I am.

00:05:30.667 --> 00:05:32.934
[exotic music playing]

00:05:33.068 --> 00:05:34.668
I got so excited.
[giggles]

00:05:34.768 --> 00:05:37.934
I really wanna be a part
of my community more

00:05:38.034 --> 00:05:39.868
through TikTok.

00:05:46.335 --> 00:05:48.534
♪ Wipe, wipe,
wipe it down ♪

00:05:48.634 --> 00:05:50.034
♪ Wipe, wipe

00:05:50.168 --> 00:05:53.368
TikTok is an app
that's completely different

00:05:53.468 --> 00:05:55.068
than any other type
of social media

00:05:55.201 --> 00:05:57.368
or entertainment platform
that we've ever seen before.

00:05:57.435 --> 00:06:00.901
TikTok was the first platform
to really popularize

00:06:01.001 --> 00:06:03.301
high quality vertical
video content,

00:06:03.401 --> 00:06:05.901
which just makes it
so easy to consume.

00:06:07.535 --> 00:06:08.535
The "For You" page
is completely,

00:06:08.635 --> 00:06:10.101
individually tailored to you,

00:06:10.201 --> 00:06:13.435
based on the data
that they gather about you.

00:06:13.568 --> 00:06:15.468
I mean, I cannot explain

00:06:15.568 --> 00:06:17.335
how fantastic
this algorithm is

00:06:17.401 --> 00:06:19.734
at delivering you exactly
what you didn't even know

00:06:19.801 --> 00:06:21.101
that you wanted.

00:06:23.401 --> 00:06:26.168
What TikTok does so well
is discovery,

00:06:26.235 --> 00:06:28.869
it allows you to drill down
on the whole internet,

00:06:28.969 --> 00:06:31.667
and find these really
specific groups of people

00:06:31.767 --> 00:06:33.767
that resonate with you.

00:06:35.935 --> 00:06:39.035
It's just any kind of niche,
subculture or community

00:06:39.135 --> 00:06:42.168
where you can find creators
that are in that niche.

00:06:42.301 --> 00:06:44.134
People just get discovered
much faster,

00:06:44.235 --> 00:06:45.535
they blow up much faster,

00:06:45.635 --> 00:06:47.735
and it's just...
everything goes ten times

00:06:47.835 --> 00:06:50.801
more viral than it would
on any other social app.

00:06:50.934 --> 00:06:53.534
It's remaking
the food landscape,

00:06:53.634 --> 00:06:56.168
the fashion landscape...

00:06:56.268 --> 00:06:58.468
People learning on TikTok...

00:06:58.568 --> 00:07:02.034
It's hard to find an industry
that TikTok hasn't infiltrated

00:07:02.101 --> 00:07:03.335
or disrupted.

00:07:03.468 --> 00:07:05.635
ANNOUNCER: TikTok
has captured the attention

00:07:05.702 --> 00:07:07.601
of the world's
most lucrative market,

00:07:07.701 --> 00:07:09.001
young people.

00:07:09.101 --> 00:07:12.701
And with it, the power
to reshape the future.

00:07:12.801 --> 00:07:15.635
[robotic vocalization]

00:07:15.735 --> 00:07:19.235
DJ Spencer in the...
[humming] Mix.

00:07:19.335 --> 00:07:23.068
[beatboxing]

00:07:23.168 --> 00:07:25.068
My friend Scott
comes up to me,

00:07:25.168 --> 00:07:27.701
and he goes, "Hey, man,
I wanna show you something

00:07:27.801 --> 00:07:29.901
you've never heard before."

00:07:30.001 --> 00:07:32.168
[beatboxing]

00:07:32.235 --> 00:07:35.668
And I was like, "What did you
just do right now?"

00:07:35.768 --> 00:07:38.401
Like, "Is this a trick?
Is this a game?" Like...

00:07:38.468 --> 00:07:40.868
And he was like, "No, no, no,
dude, it's called beatboxing.

00:07:40.968 --> 00:07:42.835
You make music
with your mouth."

00:07:42.935 --> 00:07:46.034
And I'm like, "You are
doing that with your face?"

00:07:46.101 --> 00:07:48.201
[beatboxing]

00:07:48.301 --> 00:07:52.268
I was 15. I was a sophomore
in high school,

00:07:52.335 --> 00:07:55.734
and I remember that moment
just being magic to me.

00:07:56.868 --> 00:07:59.567
Like it was love
at first sound.

00:07:59.667 --> 00:08:01.802
[beatboxing]

00:08:01.869 --> 00:08:04.300
This is Spencer Polanco,
and this is what I do.

00:08:04.434 --> 00:08:06.002
[beatboxing]

00:08:06.069 --> 00:08:10.034
And I decided that night
I was gonna be a beatboxer.

00:08:10.134 --> 00:08:13.034
But you can also imagine me
busting out of my room

00:08:13.134 --> 00:08:15.134
just, you know,
wild Spencer...

00:08:15.235 --> 00:08:16.969
full of excitement
in my eyes.

00:08:17.102 --> 00:08:20.534
"Dad! Mom! I know what I wanna
do for the rest of my life.

00:08:20.634 --> 00:08:23.301
I wanna be a beatboxer."

00:08:23.368 --> 00:08:25.201
And then they looked at me
like I was crazy.

00:08:25.335 --> 00:08:29.934
[beatboxing]

00:08:30.001 --> 00:08:31.868
♪ Spencer beatbox

00:08:31.968 --> 00:08:33.835
I grew up in New York City.

00:08:33.935 --> 00:08:37.501
My father is from Ecuador,
and he came here

00:08:37.601 --> 00:08:39.101
and found my mom.

00:08:39.201 --> 00:08:43.201
My mom is first generation,
uh, Chinese family.

00:08:43.301 --> 00:08:44.502
My father, uh...

00:08:44.635 --> 00:08:46.201
He wanted me to be
a tennis player,

00:08:46.268 --> 00:08:48.235
and my mom wanted me
to be a doctor.

00:08:48.335 --> 00:08:50.435
And then when
I expressed something

00:08:50.535 --> 00:08:53.535
they didn't understand,
which is beatboxing,

00:08:53.668 --> 00:08:56.802
they were accepting,
but confused,

00:08:56.902 --> 00:08:59.501
and then unaccepting
and even more confused.

00:08:59.601 --> 00:09:02.901
[beatboxing]

00:09:03.001 --> 00:09:05.901
I--I struggled
with a little bit of anxiety

00:09:06.001 --> 00:09:08.401
and depression
when I was in college.

00:09:08.502 --> 00:09:09.868
I had to make a decision,

00:09:09.968 --> 00:09:13.468
and I said no
to formal education.

00:09:13.568 --> 00:09:15.435
And I said yes
to beatboxing.

00:09:15.502 --> 00:09:16.968
I mean, I was
a struggling artist.

00:09:17.068 --> 00:09:19.934
I was a...
typical artist that was

00:09:20.068 --> 00:09:22.734
performing in the streets
of New York City.

00:09:22.834 --> 00:09:25.201
I was in the subways,
busking.

00:09:25.301 --> 00:09:28.868
Some days, you make $20
working all day.

00:09:31.368 --> 00:09:32.734
When I started TikTok,

00:09:32.834 --> 00:09:34.235
I had to look at myself
in the mirror,

00:09:34.368 --> 00:09:37.534
and say, "If this isn't
gonna happen right now,

00:09:37.634 --> 00:09:38.868
it's not gonna happen."

00:09:38.968 --> 00:09:43.201
Okay, this is
the first viral video.

00:09:43.301 --> 00:09:46.068
[chugging]

00:09:46.201 --> 00:09:47.101
[exhaling]

00:09:47.235 --> 00:09:50.334
[beatboxing]

00:09:50.434 --> 00:09:51.902
Look at my hair.

00:09:52.035 --> 00:09:55.868
I didn't even, like,
fix my hair for this video.

00:09:55.968 --> 00:09:58.634
And that was
a six-second video.

00:09:58.701 --> 00:09:59.634
[beatboxing]

00:09:59.734 --> 00:10:01.268
I woke up the next day

00:10:01.368 --> 00:10:05.335
and it had, like,
three million views.

00:10:05.435 --> 00:10:07.635
And I was just
genuinely confused.

00:10:07.735 --> 00:10:10.134
I was like, "Oh, my God.
They like me."

00:10:10.235 --> 00:10:13.835
I looked at it and I'm like,
"There's something here."

00:10:13.969 --> 00:10:17.068
So I decided to post more,
and I decided to do

00:10:17.168 --> 00:10:19.134
everything single idea
I possibly could."

00:10:19.201 --> 00:10:22.701
[beatboxing]

00:10:26.834 --> 00:10:28.134
TikTok topping Facebook

00:10:28.235 --> 00:10:30.735
to become the world's
most downloaded app.

00:10:30.835 --> 00:10:32.934
TAYLOR:
TikTok is absolutely massive.

00:10:33.034 --> 00:10:34.235
Last year,
they reported they had

00:10:34.335 --> 00:10:35.568
over two billion users,

00:10:35.668 --> 00:10:38.335
with almost a billion
monthly active users.

00:10:38.468 --> 00:10:40.168
People spend more time
on TikTok per day

00:10:40.301 --> 00:10:44.802
than Facebook, Snapchat,
Instagram, YouTube.

00:10:44.902 --> 00:10:48.001
Facebook is absolutely
desperate right now

00:10:48.134 --> 00:10:50.435
to regain any semblance
of relevance,

00:10:50.535 --> 00:10:52.835
which they've lost
quite a while ago.

00:10:52.935 --> 00:10:55.834
In many areas,
we're behind our competitors.

00:10:55.968 --> 00:10:58.335
The fastest growing app
is TikTok.

00:10:58.435 --> 00:11:00.001
The elephant in the room,
of course,

00:11:00.101 --> 00:11:02.268
is the fact that TikTok
is owned by ByteDance,

00:11:02.368 --> 00:11:03.835
a Chinese company.

00:11:03.902 --> 00:11:06.635
And it's the first time
we've seen a huge Chinese

00:11:06.702 --> 00:11:09.601
consumer tech company
come in and dominate

00:11:09.701 --> 00:11:11.334
the American market.

00:11:14.335 --> 00:11:16.301
SHELLY: So there was this guy
from China

00:11:16.368 --> 00:11:18.101
named Zhang Yiming.

00:11:18.168 --> 00:11:19.735
He worked for a number
of startups

00:11:19.835 --> 00:11:22.535
before starting up
his own company,

00:11:22.602 --> 00:11:24.068
a company called ByteDance.

00:11:25.368 --> 00:11:28.401
The thing that struck me
the most about TikTok

00:11:28.502 --> 00:11:30.968
was just how calculated
their founders were

00:11:31.034 --> 00:11:32.968
from the very beginning
about their goal,

00:11:33.068 --> 00:11:35.201
which was to become this kind
of global force,

00:11:35.268 --> 00:11:39.201
and really, like, penetrate
the, you know, the zeitgeist

00:11:39.301 --> 00:11:41.068
of the US.

00:11:42.468 --> 00:11:43.834
The story is going to sound
very similar

00:11:43.901 --> 00:11:46.335
to many Silicon Valley
entrepreneurs.

00:11:46.468 --> 00:11:49.201
Zhang Yiming came
from a middle class family.

00:11:49.301 --> 00:11:51.401
And he basically
just had this dream

00:11:51.502 --> 00:11:54.601
that he was going to make
something important of himself.

00:11:56.335 --> 00:11:59.235
So, when the iPhone came out,
in the late 2000s,

00:11:59.335 --> 00:12:02.001
he was just really
blown away by the fact

00:12:02.068 --> 00:12:04.901
that you could have
a full computing device,

00:12:05.034 --> 00:12:06.201
small enough to fit
in your pocket,

00:12:06.301 --> 00:12:08.035
and he was just convinced
mobile internet

00:12:08.102 --> 00:12:10.934
was going to be the next
once in a lifetime opportunity

00:12:11.068 --> 00:12:12.835
that you'd read about
in history books,

00:12:12.902 --> 00:12:14.601
and he was determined
to take advantage

00:12:14.701 --> 00:12:16.334
of this big wave.

00:12:30.834 --> 00:12:32.134
They started
in an apartment,

00:12:32.201 --> 00:12:34.034
which is very common
in Chinese...

00:12:34.134 --> 00:12:36.834
sort of internet
entrepreneurship lore.

00:12:46.168 --> 00:12:49.335
About 2015 or so,
ByteDance was doing

00:12:49.468 --> 00:12:50.702
experiments with video,

00:12:50.802 --> 00:12:53.568
and Zhang Yiming had
this sort of strange idea

00:12:53.702 --> 00:12:56.502
about recommendation engines
which serves you content

00:12:56.602 --> 00:12:58.934
that it thinks you'll be
interested in.

00:13:14.268 --> 00:13:16.234
So ByteDance bought Duoyin.

00:13:19.335 --> 00:13:20.901
Within six months
after launch

00:13:21.001 --> 00:13:23.068
it hit this inflection point.

00:13:23.168 --> 00:13:25.367
Somehow it just became viral.

00:13:26.901 --> 00:13:32.133
[singing in Chinese]

00:13:44.934 --> 00:13:45.834
Yo, what's going on?

00:13:45.934 --> 00:13:48.101
Dude, it is so hot.

00:13:48.235 --> 00:13:49.101
Dude, why don't
you just go get some

00:13:49.235 --> 00:13:50.602
Ben & Jerry's ice cream?

00:13:50.668 --> 00:13:55.368
People pay me to put
their product in my videos.

00:13:55.468 --> 00:13:57.134
It's--it's--it's crazy.

00:13:57.268 --> 00:13:58.868
These are from this week.

00:13:58.968 --> 00:14:00.535
There are so many.
Look.

00:14:00.668 --> 00:14:03.934
I get, like, clothes
from, like, all different

00:14:04.034 --> 00:14:05.734
major brands.

00:14:05.834 --> 00:14:08.133
Look at that.

00:14:23.602 --> 00:14:26.068
ANNOUNCER: After the success
of Douyin in China,

00:14:26.168 --> 00:14:27.934
ByteDance acquired
Musical.ly,

00:14:28.034 --> 00:14:30.001
a lip-synch app
already popular

00:14:30.101 --> 00:14:33.934
with kids and young teens
in the US.

00:14:34.034 --> 00:14:36.434
And merged them,
rebranding the app

00:14:36.534 --> 00:14:38.467
as TikTok.

00:14:40.201 --> 00:14:42.834
SHELLY: One thing Zhang Yiming
did was to create

00:14:42.968 --> 00:14:44.201
two different products.

00:14:44.301 --> 00:14:46.767
Duoyin was
for the Chinese market,

00:14:46.868 --> 00:14:48.068
and it was a Chinese app,

00:14:48.201 --> 00:14:49.168
and TikTok was

00:14:49.268 --> 00:14:50.868
for the global market.

00:14:51.001 --> 00:14:52.401
And what that meant

00:14:52.502 --> 00:14:54.201
was that he could keep
the Chinese app

00:14:54.301 --> 00:14:56.702
walled off in China,
with Chinese rules,

00:14:56.835 --> 00:15:00.201
and then keep TikTok
for the rest of the globe.

00:15:00.301 --> 00:15:02.168
TikTok was,
all of the sudden,

00:15:02.268 --> 00:15:05.034
this huge success
from day one.

00:15:05.134 --> 00:15:07.034
TikTok has done
what no other Chinese-made app

00:15:07.168 --> 00:15:08.435
has done before.

00:15:08.568 --> 00:15:09.934
It's cracked
the international market,

00:15:10.034 --> 00:15:11.535
and become a global sensation.

00:15:11.602 --> 00:15:13.068
ANNOUNCER: TikTok is
now available

00:15:13.168 --> 00:15:16.568
in 154 countries
and 75 languages,

00:15:16.668 --> 00:15:19.400
rivaling Silicon Valley's
biggest apps.

00:15:26.168 --> 00:15:27.635
TikTok and its owner ByteDance

00:15:27.735 --> 00:15:30.435
were the first Chinese
social media company

00:15:30.502 --> 00:15:32.502
to really provide
a wake-up call

00:15:32.602 --> 00:15:35.201
to Facebook, Google,
Amazon, and others,

00:15:35.301 --> 00:15:37.968
that it's not just
about Silicone Valley

00:15:38.101 --> 00:15:39.668
bringing technology
to the world,

00:15:39.768 --> 00:15:41.701
but, really,
that China's a real force

00:15:41.801 --> 00:15:42.767
to be reckoned with.

00:15:45.934 --> 00:15:48.034
MATTHEW: There's sort
of this perception

00:15:48.168 --> 00:15:49.068
that there was too much

00:15:49.168 --> 00:15:50.535
of a cultural difference

00:15:50.635 --> 00:15:53.368
between China
and the rest of the world

00:15:53.468 --> 00:15:56.201
and that Chinese companies
didn't know to build

00:15:56.301 --> 00:15:58.668
globally successful
social media.

00:15:58.802 --> 00:16:03.468
I think TikTok's completely
blown that out of water.

00:16:03.568 --> 00:16:07.068
The world we all grew up in
was one where America

00:16:07.134 --> 00:16:09.201
dominated culturally,

00:16:09.335 --> 00:16:11.702
where it dominated
technologically,

00:16:11.802 --> 00:16:14.568
and the world that we
will end up retiring in

00:16:14.668 --> 00:16:18.235
will probably be one
where China dominates

00:16:18.368 --> 00:16:20.401
in most of those areas.

00:16:20.502 --> 00:16:23.568
Power is shifting
to China rapidly.

00:16:23.635 --> 00:16:26.467
And ByteDance and the story
of TikTok is part of that.

00:16:32.434 --> 00:16:34.001
- Hi.
- Hi.

00:16:34.068 --> 00:16:35.868
- How are you?
- Good.

00:16:35.968 --> 00:16:37.168
So what are you gonna do?

00:16:37.268 --> 00:16:39.901
I wanna play with...
adding just, like,

00:16:40.001 --> 00:16:41.502
more dimension
to my hair,

00:16:41.602 --> 00:16:43.534
it's, like, a little flat...

00:16:43.634 --> 00:16:44.668
Yes.

00:16:44.735 --> 00:16:46.068
DEJA: I think
that it's scary

00:16:46.134 --> 00:16:48.235
to be the first generation,

00:16:48.335 --> 00:16:50.501
to have
our entire lives documented.

00:16:52.201 --> 00:16:54.602
Every action, you know,
every haircut,

00:16:54.702 --> 00:16:58.368
every look change
is on people's radars.

00:16:58.468 --> 00:17:00.768
You know, I work a job
where so much of it

00:17:00.869 --> 00:17:03.568
is, like, looking...
being looked at, or...

00:17:03.668 --> 00:17:06.667
- Yeah.
- Looking at myself, honestly.

00:17:06.767 --> 00:17:07.768
What do you do?

00:17:07.902 --> 00:17:10.502
Some influencer
and content creation work,

00:17:10.602 --> 00:17:13.869
so I went viral
for the first time,

00:17:13.935 --> 00:17:16.734
uh, when I was 16 years old
for a confrontation

00:17:16.834 --> 00:17:17.902
with my Senator.

00:17:18.002 --> 00:17:20.201
Republican Senator Jeff Flake
held a town hall

00:17:20.335 --> 00:17:22.268
in Mesa, Arizona last night,

00:17:22.368 --> 00:17:24.068
and got an earful
from 16-year-old activist

00:17:24.168 --> 00:17:25.735
Deja Foxx.
Take a look.

00:17:25.835 --> 00:17:28.602
So I'm a young woman,
and you're a middle-aged man.

00:17:28.702 --> 00:17:30.768
- I'm a person of color...
- Ouch.

00:17:30.835 --> 00:17:33.835
...and you're white.
Uhm, I come from a background

00:17:33.935 --> 00:17:36.001
of poverty and I didn't
always have parents

00:17:36.101 --> 00:17:37.134
to guide me through life.

00:17:37.235 --> 00:17:39.234
You come from privilege.

00:17:47.301 --> 00:17:49.767
Why would you deny me
the American Dream?

00:17:49.901 --> 00:17:51.468
DEJA: I woke up
the next morning,

00:17:51.568 --> 00:17:54.401
and 18 million people
had seen that video.

00:17:54.535 --> 00:17:56.901
And I had a request
to my email to go live on CNN.

00:17:57.001 --> 00:17:59.702
I can't sit idly by
while women like me

00:17:59.768 --> 00:18:02.235
are countlessly and constantly
being ignored

00:18:02.335 --> 00:18:03.735
on Capitol Hill.

00:18:03.835 --> 00:18:06.134
And I suddenly realized
that all those things

00:18:06.235 --> 00:18:07.668
I've been putting
on social

00:18:07.768 --> 00:18:10.235
that I thought were only
going to the people

00:18:10.335 --> 00:18:14.301
who knew me, overnight
I could be visible

00:18:14.401 --> 00:18:16.734
to people
that I will never know.

00:18:18.201 --> 00:18:20.701
The internet connected me
to the entire world.

00:18:26.802 --> 00:18:31.068
TikTok is a blowup overnight
kind of place.

00:18:31.168 --> 00:18:36.668
On any platform where you can
get extreme reach,

00:18:36.802 --> 00:18:38.767
you open yourself up
to benefits, right?

00:18:38.868 --> 00:18:41.801
larger followings,
more views,

00:18:41.868 --> 00:18:44.001
more attention.

00:18:44.101 --> 00:18:46.802
You must open yourself up
to more hate,

00:18:46.902 --> 00:18:51.034
to people who are going
to tear you down,

00:18:51.134 --> 00:18:53.968
tear you apart,
pick at you...

00:18:54.101 --> 00:18:56.701
I live in a pretty constant
state of anxiety.

00:18:58.635 --> 00:19:01.068
I don't know what it's like
to live in a world

00:19:01.201 --> 00:19:03.801
where I'm not
being perceived always.

00:19:05.101 --> 00:19:06.667
And it's this tug of war
between...

00:19:06.801 --> 00:19:08.468
that's kind of what I want,

00:19:08.568 --> 00:19:10.934
and it's kind of the thing
I fear the most.

00:19:13.668 --> 00:19:16.235
I think there is a really
interesting line

00:19:16.335 --> 00:19:19.368
between what it means
to be empowered

00:19:19.468 --> 00:19:20.968
by your sexuality,

00:19:21.101 --> 00:19:23.701
versus being exploited
by it online.

00:19:25.502 --> 00:19:28.834
I definitely think
that women are seeing

00:19:28.934 --> 00:19:30.902
larger followings,
more attention,

00:19:30.969 --> 00:19:34.301
from the ways that they're
being sexualized online.

00:19:34.368 --> 00:19:38.235
You can be a bad bitch
in a bikini

00:19:38.368 --> 00:19:41.168
and a boss bitch
in a blazer.

00:19:41.235 --> 00:19:43.400
Do both.

00:19:45.101 --> 00:19:49.968
The posts where I'm showing
more skin do better.

00:19:51.235 --> 00:19:53.535
But I also question
why that is.

00:19:53.635 --> 00:19:56.635
If we think that these platforms
really are just showing us

00:19:56.735 --> 00:19:59.668
the most popular content,
without really interrogating

00:19:59.768 --> 00:20:02.400
why we're seeing
what we're seeing.

00:20:02.501 --> 00:20:04.968
That's dangerous.

00:20:05.101 --> 00:20:07.768
There is so much mystery
to the algorithm.

00:20:07.902 --> 00:20:10.802
The algorithm.
Like, what does that even mean?

00:20:10.935 --> 00:20:14.734
When I call your name
I shall place the sorting hat

00:20:14.801 --> 00:20:16.468
on your head...

00:20:16.568 --> 00:20:18.535
and you'll be sorted
in your Houses.

00:20:18.635 --> 00:20:20.535
EUGENE: I refer to TikTok
as a sorting hat,

00:20:20.602 --> 00:20:22.201
in reference
to the sorting hat

00:20:22.301 --> 00:20:23.568
from "Harry Potter."

00:20:23.668 --> 00:20:25.768
When the kids show up
at Hogwarts,

00:20:25.835 --> 00:20:27.502
there's this magical
sorting hat

00:20:27.635 --> 00:20:30.435
that sorts them into one
of the four schools.

00:20:30.535 --> 00:20:33.335
TikTok's recommendation
algorithm serves

00:20:33.435 --> 00:20:35.335
as that type
of sorting hat.

00:20:35.468 --> 00:20:38.735
It sorts its users
into different audiences,

00:20:38.869 --> 00:20:42.535
then it sorts videos
into different clusters

00:20:42.635 --> 00:20:44.335
that appeal
to different audiences.

00:20:44.435 --> 00:20:47.368
Most apps, like Facebook,
Twitter, Instagram

00:20:47.502 --> 00:20:49.401
you actually have to follow
a lot of accounts,

00:20:49.535 --> 00:20:51.568
or other people,
or people you know.

00:20:51.668 --> 00:20:54.535
TikTok was very different,
in that, even if you

00:20:54.602 --> 00:20:57.134
didn't follow anybody,
you would over time,

00:20:57.235 --> 00:20:58.668
just by using the app,

00:20:58.768 --> 00:21:01.367
get a very personalized
entertainment experience

00:21:01.467 --> 00:21:03.768
for yourself.

00:21:03.869 --> 00:21:06.535
Is anyone else, like,
a little weirded out

00:21:06.668 --> 00:21:09.168
about how specific TikTok's
algorithm gets

00:21:09.301 --> 00:21:10.802
for the "For You" page.

00:21:10.902 --> 00:21:13.534
EUGENE: The "For You" page
on Tiktok is the default

00:21:13.634 --> 00:21:15.635
that the app opens into.

00:21:15.735 --> 00:21:17.368
On the one hand, it has
a bunch of attributes

00:21:17.468 --> 00:21:18.702
about the video.

00:21:18.802 --> 00:21:21.568
It has the song in it.
It has a dog.

00:21:21.668 --> 00:21:23.834
And the other, it has a bunch
of attributes about you,

00:21:23.968 --> 00:21:27.869
you're this age,
you live here,

00:21:28.002 --> 00:21:31.568
those are contextual clues
to feed their algorithm

00:21:31.668 --> 00:21:34.834
to determine
what your tastes are.

00:21:34.934 --> 00:21:36.602
My TikTok algorithm
is just like,

00:21:36.668 --> 00:21:39.034
"You have ADHD,
you have BPD,

00:21:39.134 --> 00:21:40.602
you're depressed."

00:21:40.702 --> 00:21:42.668
EUGENE: When you're looking
at each video

00:21:42.768 --> 00:21:45.535
on the "For You" page,
TikTok, the app,

00:21:45.668 --> 00:21:51.468
is looking at how we react
to that video.

00:21:51.568 --> 00:21:54.568
The algorithm starts
to become smarter

00:21:54.668 --> 00:21:56.301
just off of
these long sessions

00:21:56.368 --> 00:21:59.435
where you're addictively
scrolling through videos.

00:21:59.535 --> 00:22:04.735
And then adjust what videos
it shows you in the future.

00:22:04.835 --> 00:22:06.868
And over time, it builds
almost a fingerprint

00:22:06.968 --> 00:22:09.968
of your tastes.

00:22:10.068 --> 00:22:11.635
I'm talking, like,
I was just thinking about

00:22:11.702 --> 00:22:13.134
making a peanut butter
and jelly sandwich,

00:22:13.268 --> 00:22:14.935
and then, out of nowhere,
someone is making

00:22:15.035 --> 00:22:16.869
a peanut butter and jelly
on my "For You" page.

00:22:16.969 --> 00:22:19.268
But lately, I kid you not,
it hasn't been things

00:22:19.335 --> 00:22:21.268
that I Google or I talk about,

00:22:21.335 --> 00:22:22.802
it's been thoughts.

00:22:22.935 --> 00:22:24.902
Are any other girls, like,
kind of aggravated

00:22:25.002 --> 00:22:26.735
that it took more
than 20 years to figure out

00:22:26.835 --> 00:22:28.968
we were bisexual, but
it took my TikTok algorithm

00:22:29.068 --> 00:22:31.134
like 37 seconds?

00:22:31.235 --> 00:22:33.735
EUGENE: TikTok is just
the latest manifestation

00:22:33.835 --> 00:22:36.168
of the power that comes
from connecting

00:22:36.235 --> 00:22:39.668
billions of people in
the world with really powerful

00:22:39.802 --> 00:22:43.535
machine learning
recommendation algorithms.

00:22:43.635 --> 00:22:45.668
The creator economy
is the fastest growing type

00:22:45.768 --> 00:22:47.635
of small business, with more
than 50 million people

00:22:47.735 --> 00:22:49.667
around the world
who consider themselves

00:22:49.767 --> 00:22:51.068
to be Content Creators.

00:22:52.768 --> 00:22:55.068
TAYLOR: All the biggest
brands, they wanna do TikTok

00:22:55.168 --> 00:22:57.468
campaigns, because it has
the hype right now.

00:22:57.568 --> 00:23:00.301
TikTok has just
really resonated

00:23:00.401 --> 00:23:02.835
with this Gen-Z audience,

00:23:02.935 --> 00:23:04.768
which is where
the most valuable users are.

00:23:04.869 --> 00:23:07.602
We have brands poised
to spend over $15 billion

00:23:07.702 --> 00:23:10.101
in the next year,
on influencer marketing alone.

00:23:10.235 --> 00:23:14.467
Eyeballs bring money
and brands chase the eyeballs.

00:23:14.567 --> 00:23:15.767
chase young users.

00:23:15.868 --> 00:23:17.335
JIMMY: In less than a year,

00:23:17.468 --> 00:23:19.934
you have almost 35 million
followers on TikTok.

00:23:20.068 --> 00:23:23.335
Over two billion likes...
Billion. Wow.

00:23:23.435 --> 00:23:25.168
[audience cheering]

00:23:25.301 --> 00:23:27.734
TAYLOR: TikTokers, they've
embraced that idea of being

00:23:27.834 --> 00:23:29.101
the entrepreneur.

00:23:29.201 --> 00:23:30.969
They're not just in it
to get famous,

00:23:31.069 --> 00:23:32.901
they're also in it
to get rich and successful.

00:23:32.968 --> 00:23:34.968
The social media
influencer market

00:23:35.068 --> 00:23:37.468
is a multi-billion
dollar industry,

00:23:37.568 --> 00:23:40.668
and some young people
are cashing in big time.

00:23:40.768 --> 00:23:42.268
TAYLOR: I mean, these
TikTokers are making more

00:23:42.401 --> 00:23:45.001
in their first year
than a lot of huge YouTubers

00:23:45.101 --> 00:23:47.834
have made throughout
the entire past decade.

00:23:49.034 --> 00:23:51.134
Late 2019
was my first brand deal

00:23:51.235 --> 00:23:52.601
and it was for Nike.

00:23:52.667 --> 00:23:54.969
When I first told my parents

00:23:55.069 --> 00:23:57.634
that I was doing something
for Nike, they were like,

00:23:57.701 --> 00:24:02.168
"What? Nike?
Like Nike?"

00:24:02.268 --> 00:24:05.034
The fact that anyone wants
to use beatboxing for anything

00:24:05.168 --> 00:24:07.768
is the coolest thing
on Earth to me.

00:24:07.835 --> 00:24:10.468
This is a doll made
for Little Caesar's.

00:24:10.602 --> 00:24:13.235
Life-size.
Even got the hair.

00:24:13.335 --> 00:24:14.802
[beatboxing]

00:24:14.869 --> 00:24:18.535
I'm a beatboxer,
and I'm hanging out

00:24:18.635 --> 00:24:23.667
at Jason Derulo's house,
like, "How did this happen?"

00:24:23.767 --> 00:24:25.168
Like this is dope.

00:24:25.268 --> 00:24:29.001
[singing]

00:24:29.101 --> 00:24:30.201
[beatboxing]

00:24:30.301 --> 00:24:32.268
SPENCER: TikTok has made
music more fun.

00:24:32.368 --> 00:24:35.101
When we talk about
revolutionizing, you know,

00:24:35.168 --> 00:24:36.101
an industry...

00:24:36.168 --> 00:24:37.401
[beatboxing]

00:24:37.535 --> 00:24:40.168
...that has existed
for so long by itself...

00:24:40.268 --> 00:24:41.535
[beatboxing]

00:24:41.635 --> 00:24:44.201
TikTok's taking away
that guardian, that little gate.

00:24:44.301 --> 00:24:46.368
Now there's so many
independent artists,

00:24:46.468 --> 00:24:49.268
especially coming from TikTok,
that have just, like,

00:24:49.401 --> 00:24:51.635
cult following that'll
have people that believe

00:24:51.735 --> 00:24:54.001
in them, being outside
of the industry.

00:24:54.101 --> 00:24:56.235
[beatboxing]

00:24:56.335 --> 00:25:00.101
It wasn't until I was on TV,
when I presented

00:25:00.235 --> 00:25:01.968
at the
"Billboard Music Awards,"

00:25:02.068 --> 00:25:03.801
that's when my parents,
they were like,

00:25:03.934 --> 00:25:06.235
"All right, Spencer's
on TV now,

00:25:06.335 --> 00:25:08.268
I don't know what to do
with this information."

00:25:08.368 --> 00:25:11.034
[beatboxing]

00:25:13.969 --> 00:25:15.801
TAYLOR: TikTok has also
completely upended

00:25:15.901 --> 00:25:17.568
the talent industry
in Hollywood.

00:25:17.668 --> 00:25:19.902
Hollywood people love TikTok,
because they're like,

00:25:20.002 --> 00:25:23.902
"Great, more famous people,
more people to make us money."

00:25:24.035 --> 00:25:26.802
These TikTokers are launching
their own brands.

00:25:26.902 --> 00:25:28.834
You have a beauty line
coming out, right?

00:25:28.901 --> 00:25:30.535
TAYLOR: Think of Addison Rae,
right?

00:25:30.668 --> 00:25:31.868
She's a hugely popular
TikToker.

00:25:31.968 --> 00:25:33.335
She launched Item Beauty.

00:25:33.468 --> 00:25:35.869
So you see a lot
of these young TikTokers

00:25:35.935 --> 00:25:40.301
building already
multi-million dollar empires.

00:25:40.401 --> 00:25:42.702
Someone like Bella Poarch
went viral for this, like,

00:25:42.768 --> 00:25:44.001
lipsynching video,
where she's making

00:25:44.134 --> 00:25:45.901
these funny
facial expressions.

00:25:45.968 --> 00:25:47.134
♪ It's M to the B,
it's M to the B ♪

00:25:48.869 --> 00:25:51.068
TAYLOR: She used that
to launch a pop star career.

00:25:51.168 --> 00:25:54.368
I mean, she's had several
huge hit songs now.

00:25:54.435 --> 00:25:56.968
Somebody like Lil Nas X
is also a good example,

00:25:57.068 --> 00:25:58.968
somebody that really
leveraged the internet

00:25:59.034 --> 00:26:00.969
to promote his own career.

00:26:01.035 --> 00:26:05.268
♪ Oh, I'm gonna ride
'til I can't no more ♪

00:26:05.368 --> 00:26:06.767
TAYLOR:
TikTok defines "Top 40."

00:26:06.901 --> 00:26:08.901
If you go
to the Trending List

00:26:09.001 --> 00:26:10.602
on Spotify of
the most viral hits,

00:26:10.735 --> 00:26:14.568
it's all TikTok songs,
and it is a really crazy mix.

00:26:14.668 --> 00:26:17.868
We saw Fleetwood Mac "Dreams",
you know, resurged,

00:26:17.968 --> 00:26:19.834
because of a viral video.

00:26:19.968 --> 00:26:21.968
♪ It's only right

00:26:22.068 --> 00:26:24.768
♪ That you should
play the way... ♪

00:26:24.835 --> 00:26:26.901
TAYLOR: The whole media
ecosystem has migrated

00:26:27.001 --> 00:26:28.301
towards this
personality-driven

00:26:28.435 --> 00:26:30.668
form of entertainment,
so often people think,

00:26:30.768 --> 00:26:32.068
"Oh, I'm on Content Creators,
right?

00:26:32.168 --> 00:26:33.734
That's some teenager
that's dancing".

00:26:33.834 --> 00:26:37.134
No! Online influence
is influence.

00:26:37.268 --> 00:26:39.868
And if you can make
an impact online,

00:26:39.968 --> 00:26:43.300
you have the ability
to reshape the world.

00:26:52.735 --> 00:26:55.467
FEROZA: I started realizing
TikTok had power.

00:26:57.201 --> 00:26:59.368
Even if it was for
a comedy or makeup.

00:26:59.468 --> 00:27:02.934
Whatever I was posting,
people wanted to watch it.

00:27:03.901 --> 00:27:05.934
And I was, like,
"Okay,

00:27:06.068 --> 00:27:08.400
so anything's possible
on this app."

00:27:10.502 --> 00:27:14.801
Anyone can basically go viral
on this app.

00:27:20.368 --> 00:27:23.969
After joining TikTok,
I decided, like,

00:27:24.069 --> 00:27:28.768
"Maybe I wanna make more
political-savvy videos,"

00:27:28.835 --> 00:27:32.401
and I got more--more views
on that.

00:27:32.502 --> 00:27:35.134
Hi, if you, um, actually
think all lives matter,

00:27:35.235 --> 00:27:36.868
I want you to speak up
about the kids in cages

00:27:36.968 --> 00:27:38.335
at the border,
I want you to speak up

00:27:38.435 --> 00:27:40.001
about the kids dying
in the Middle East.

00:27:40.068 --> 00:27:41.535
I want you to speak out
about the child...

00:27:41.668 --> 00:27:44.168
I first read about the Uighurs
through social media

00:27:44.268 --> 00:27:46.768
since I do follow
Muslim pages,

00:27:46.869 --> 00:27:48.968
and try to keep up
with my community.

00:27:49.101 --> 00:27:50.568
NEWSCASTER:
Across the Northwestern

00:27:50.702 --> 00:27:53.268
province of Xinjiang,
an estimated one million

00:27:53.368 --> 00:27:56.368
Chinese Muslims have vanished
into a vast network

00:27:56.468 --> 00:28:00.101
of detention centers
that targets Uyghur Muslims.

00:28:00.201 --> 00:28:03.834
I saw someone post a picture
of these Uyghurs,

00:28:03.934 --> 00:28:06.001
Uyghur prisoners,

00:28:06.101 --> 00:28:08.002
and when I did more research,
I found out

00:28:08.069 --> 00:28:10.101
that this genocide
is happening in front of us,

00:28:10.201 --> 00:28:12.133
and no one is
speaking about it.

00:28:13.968 --> 00:28:17.869
♪ Okay, okay...

00:28:17.969 --> 00:28:19.934
It says, "News outlets
when innocent Muslims

00:28:20.034 --> 00:28:21.301
"are getting murdered
every day

00:28:21.368 --> 00:28:23.534
in the Middle East
and in China."

00:28:26.535 --> 00:28:29.068
The next day,
after I posted that video,

00:28:29.168 --> 00:28:31.034
I--I looked at my feed,

00:28:31.168 --> 00:28:33.168
and I saw where
the post used to be,

00:28:33.268 --> 00:28:36.435
it was no longer the image
of my face on there.

00:28:36.535 --> 00:28:39.200
It was just
a black little box.

00:28:41.602 --> 00:28:43.134
When I clicked on it,
it just would say,

00:28:43.235 --> 00:28:44.934
"Video unavailable."

00:28:46.435 --> 00:28:49.435
I was shocked at that time,
but once I found out

00:28:49.535 --> 00:28:51.534
that TikTok is
a Beijing-owned app,

00:28:51.667 --> 00:28:54.067
I was no longer shocked.

00:28:55.635 --> 00:28:58.001
I found out how TikTok's
basically using our data,

00:28:58.101 --> 00:28:59.301
using our information,

00:28:59.401 --> 00:29:00.535
and using it
for their own benefit.

00:29:00.635 --> 00:29:02.235
TikTok is a Beijing-owned app.

00:29:02.335 --> 00:29:04.468
It has censored videos
that are against the CCP.

00:29:04.602 --> 00:29:06.235
I don't know about you, guys,
but I wanna know

00:29:06.335 --> 00:29:08.033
what TikTok's doing
with our information.

00:29:10.834 --> 00:29:13.001
AI is--is hungry for data,

00:29:13.101 --> 00:29:14.401
so the more data you have,

00:29:14.502 --> 00:29:16.535
the more accurate
the AI becomes,

00:29:16.668 --> 00:29:21.068
so in the age of AI,
uh, data's the new oil,

00:29:21.168 --> 00:29:23.434
and China is
the new Saudi Arabia.

00:29:24.902 --> 00:29:30.101
SCOTT: Your data is an asset
to a lot of companies.

00:29:30.168 --> 00:29:32.934
Google and Amazon
and Facebook are so big,

00:29:33.034 --> 00:29:34.634
and they have so much money
because they have

00:29:34.767 --> 00:29:36.468
all of your data.

00:29:36.568 --> 00:29:38.934
And there's a whole secondary
market for data,

00:29:39.001 --> 00:29:40.468
called "Data Brokers."

00:29:40.568 --> 00:29:42.201
And they're gathering
all of this data,

00:29:42.301 --> 00:29:44.168
and they're selling it
to each other,

00:29:44.235 --> 00:29:47.168
and it's really no different
than the stock market.

00:29:47.268 --> 00:29:50.101
If a company can start
gathering that data,

00:29:50.235 --> 00:29:52.468
thousands of points of data
a day,

00:29:52.568 --> 00:29:56.168
from the time someone's five
until the time they're 18,

00:29:56.268 --> 00:29:58.335
those companies,
when they sell that data,

00:29:58.468 --> 00:30:01.068
they have a profile
that knows a child

00:30:01.168 --> 00:30:03.968
way better
than a parent would.

00:30:04.101 --> 00:30:06.767
And that is extremely valuable
to advertisers,

00:30:06.901 --> 00:30:09.301
and to people who want
to persuade you

00:30:09.368 --> 00:30:12.534
to do something you might
otherwise not want to do.

00:30:15.768 --> 00:30:19.134
If social media is determining
and tracking you

00:30:19.235 --> 00:30:20.868
in different ways,
and--and telling you

00:30:20.968 --> 00:30:22.201
what your dreams
are going to be,

00:30:22.301 --> 00:30:24.035
based on the ads
you're getting,

00:30:24.135 --> 00:30:28.534
that impacts the kid's brain
and it impacts their goals.

00:30:30.435 --> 00:30:33.635
There's a lot of harms
happening with these companies

00:30:33.735 --> 00:30:36.235
that are--are based
in Northern California.

00:30:36.301 --> 00:30:38.834
What's different
about TikTok is,

00:30:38.934 --> 00:30:42.001
where is this data going?

00:30:42.101 --> 00:30:43.868
NEWSCASTER:
TikTok is reportedly

00:30:43.934 --> 00:30:45.535
under federal investigation.

00:30:45.635 --> 00:30:47.535
The US Government
reportedly launching

00:30:47.635 --> 00:30:50.001
a national security review
of the company's

00:30:50.134 --> 00:30:53.001
data collection,
and censorship practices,

00:30:53.134 --> 00:30:55.335
amid concerns that users'
personal data

00:30:55.435 --> 00:30:57.802
could be accessible
to foreign governments.

00:30:57.902 --> 00:31:01.235
SCOTT: There's very little
transparency.

00:31:01.335 --> 00:31:03.968
Just because a tech company
says something...

00:31:04.068 --> 00:31:05.568
and I'm not just
talking about TikTok.

00:31:05.668 --> 00:31:09.901
We don't have to take the tech
company at its word.

00:31:10.001 --> 00:31:11.869
I think Facebook
is somewhat scared

00:31:11.935 --> 00:31:15.101
of the quick rise of TikTok,
because all that data

00:31:15.201 --> 00:31:18.467
that Facebook was getting
is now going to TikTok.

00:31:24.201 --> 00:31:25.935
The Chinese, one of the few
markets where Facebook

00:31:26.035 --> 00:31:28.801
is unavailable right now,
because of government censors...

00:31:28.901 --> 00:31:30.401
While Facebook CEO,
Mark Zuckerberg,

00:31:30.502 --> 00:31:33.868
appears to be trying bit by bit
to reenter the world's

00:31:34.001 --> 00:31:36.901
largest internet population,
China.

00:31:37.034 --> 00:31:38.401
SHELLY:
Facebook was probably

00:31:38.468 --> 00:31:40.468
the most aggressive
social media company

00:31:40.568 --> 00:31:42.435
to try to get
into China,

00:31:42.502 --> 00:31:45.567
because social media in China
had been blocked

00:31:45.667 --> 00:31:47.501
for a number of years.

00:31:49.235 --> 00:31:51.001
Mark Zuckerberg was trying
to find a way

00:31:51.101 --> 00:31:52.934
that they could exist
somehow in China.

00:31:53.034 --> 00:31:55.367
And so he learned Mandarin.

00:32:04.101 --> 00:32:06.468
He went to a number
of conferences,

00:32:06.568 --> 00:32:09.568
where he could put himself
in front of Xi Jinping,

00:32:09.668 --> 00:32:11.969
and speak
to Xi Jinping directly.

00:32:12.069 --> 00:32:15.601
And he really was aggressive
in saying, you know,

00:32:15.701 --> 00:32:17.068
"This is a huge market.

00:32:17.134 --> 00:32:20.268
"How can we be
this global connector

00:32:20.335 --> 00:32:24.702
for the world and not have
China be part of it?"

00:32:24.768 --> 00:32:28.101
But it became clear to him
in the last few years

00:32:28.168 --> 00:32:29.935
that it's not going to work.

00:32:30.035 --> 00:32:34.602
And so he completely changed,
he completely had a 180

00:32:34.702 --> 00:32:37.201
and he went,
uh, on the offensive.

00:32:37.301 --> 00:32:40.168
A decade ago, almost all
of the major internet platforms

00:32:40.268 --> 00:32:41.468
were American.

00:32:41.602 --> 00:32:45.602
Today, six of the top ten
are Chinese.

00:32:45.702 --> 00:32:47.835
He realized that,
"If I can't win over

00:32:47.935 --> 00:32:50.635
"the Chinese market, then I'm
gonna make it harder for them

00:32:50.735 --> 00:32:53.635
to win over my market
in the US."

00:32:53.702 --> 00:32:56.168
NEWSCASTER: Mark Zuckerberg
has reportedly called TikTok

00:32:56.301 --> 00:32:58.468
"A threat to democracy."

00:32:58.535 --> 00:33:00.668
What the Facebook CEO
failed to mention

00:33:00.768 --> 00:33:03.501
is that he tried to purchase
TikTok's predecessor,

00:33:03.601 --> 00:33:05.069
Musical.ly.

00:33:05.202 --> 00:33:08.602
MAN: Zuckerberg's clearly
very concerned about TikTok,

00:33:08.702 --> 00:33:11.535
because it's the most genuine
new competition

00:33:11.635 --> 00:33:14.334
he's received for a long time.

00:33:16.002 --> 00:33:19.834
Guys, remember when Facebook was
the number one place on Earth?

00:33:19.934 --> 00:33:21.667
My grandmother
doesn't even use Facebook.

00:33:21.734 --> 00:33:22.667
She's too cool.

00:33:22.767 --> 00:33:24.300
No, I'm kidding.

00:33:27.602 --> 00:33:29.335
I posted a prank on my page,

00:33:29.435 --> 00:33:31.901
and it has like
three million views right now.

00:33:32.001 --> 00:33:34.401
[imitates buzzing sound]

00:33:34.535 --> 00:33:36.268
- Oh!
- You know what?

00:33:36.368 --> 00:33:37.667
That's what you get, my boy.

00:33:37.767 --> 00:33:38.934
Uh-huh.

00:33:39.034 --> 00:33:41.435
Come here.
Yeah, yeah. Mm...

00:33:41.568 --> 00:33:43.668
- [screams]
- [laughs]

00:33:43.802 --> 00:33:46.768
SPENCER: I think it's all
about how creative you are.

00:33:46.835 --> 00:33:50.634
I mean, that's what TikTok
has taught me.

00:33:50.734 --> 00:33:52.634
Eh!

00:33:55.868 --> 00:33:59.534
[beatboxing]

00:34:02.268 --> 00:34:03.734
- That was good.
- I like that one.

00:34:03.801 --> 00:34:06.034
Content's easy
with you, Merrick.

00:34:06.168 --> 00:34:08.834
My name is Merrick Hanna.
I am 16 years old.

00:34:08.934 --> 00:34:12.068
[beatboxing]

00:34:12.201 --> 00:34:13.969
When people think
of influencers...

00:34:14.035 --> 00:34:17.767
I think they think
it's very leisurely. It's not.

00:34:20.034 --> 00:34:23.667
[beatboxing]

00:34:24.934 --> 00:34:26.635
- It's fast.
- Is that how it goes?

00:34:26.702 --> 00:34:28.268
- Yeah, it's that fast.
- Why is it so fast?

00:34:28.368 --> 00:34:30.468
- 'Cause it loops.
- Ah.

00:34:30.568 --> 00:34:32.335
Yeah, so it seems like it's
longer when you watch it.

00:34:32.435 --> 00:34:33.767
I don't think it needs
to be quite as fast

00:34:33.901 --> 00:34:35.001
as you're suggesting.

00:34:35.134 --> 00:34:37.301
Try to make it longer,
you're rushing so much.

00:34:37.401 --> 00:34:39.702
To manage Merrick's career
at this point,

00:34:39.768 --> 00:34:43.969
is definitely a full time job,
on top of my full time job.

00:34:44.069 --> 00:34:46.969
Reading all the emails for him,
reading the contracts,

00:34:47.069 --> 00:34:49.834
reading offers, replying,
the back and forth...

00:34:49.934 --> 00:34:51.635
My dad helps a lot
with finding ideas,

00:34:51.735 --> 00:34:53.435
because that
is a big part of it.

00:34:53.535 --> 00:34:55.401
He'll find a trend
that he thinks I can do,

00:34:55.502 --> 00:34:56.735
he'll show it to me,
and I'll be like,

00:34:56.835 --> 00:34:58.435
"All right,
I know what to do."

00:34:58.535 --> 00:35:01.201
Hit, hit, hit.
Then I'll push back.

00:35:01.301 --> 00:35:02.235
Even though it may not
seem like it,

00:35:02.335 --> 00:35:03.735
he does a lot of the work.

00:35:03.835 --> 00:35:06.934
I--I don't sleep quite as much
as I used to.

00:35:09.400 --> 00:35:12.801
[beatboxing]

00:35:16.201 --> 00:35:17.568
SHAWN:
It's like a gold rush.

00:35:17.668 --> 00:35:19.768
Brands wisely
are now seeing

00:35:19.835 --> 00:35:22.401
that you can
pinpoint an audience

00:35:22.502 --> 00:35:24.401
better, probably,
through social media,

00:35:24.468 --> 00:35:26.002
and TikTok especially,

00:35:26.069 --> 00:35:29.702
than a lot of traditional
means of advertising,

00:35:29.802 --> 00:35:31.635
and then, there's a lot
of people who are trying

00:35:31.735 --> 00:35:33.101
to take advantage
of the gold rush,

00:35:33.201 --> 00:35:34.902
who just shouldn't be,
who are incompetent,

00:35:35.002 --> 00:35:38.168
but a lot of the influencers
are young and inexperienced,

00:35:38.301 --> 00:35:40.735
- and don't know better.
- Right.

00:35:40.835 --> 00:35:43.702
I think that having a parent
filter social media messages

00:35:43.768 --> 00:35:46.134
is critical
parent involvement,

00:35:46.235 --> 00:35:47.901
if you wanna keep an eye

00:35:48.001 --> 00:35:49.934
- on your child--
- It's very important.

00:35:50.034 --> 00:35:51.968
Yeah.

00:35:52.068 --> 00:35:54.134
♪ Inferno

00:35:54.235 --> 00:35:56.901
♪ Baby, I'm the reason
why bad's so fun ♪

00:35:57.001 --> 00:35:59.401
NEWSCASTER: "A third
of TikTok's US users

00:35:59.502 --> 00:36:03.334
may be 14 or under,
raising safety questions."

00:36:05.201 --> 00:36:07.934
An extremely popular video app
that was called Musical.ly

00:36:08.034 --> 00:36:10.335
is now called TikTok,
has agreed to pay

00:36:10.435 --> 00:36:12.568
millions of dollars in fines
for illegally collecting

00:36:12.668 --> 00:36:14.634
personal information
from children.

00:36:20.968 --> 00:36:22.702
Hey, Carter.

00:36:22.802 --> 00:36:25.568
SCOTT: These companies
are preying on children.

00:36:25.668 --> 00:36:28.668
TikTok is amassing
a profile on them,

00:36:28.802 --> 00:36:31.635
so that they can be
targeted by advertisers.

00:36:31.735 --> 00:36:34.401
They can push ideas
to that child,

00:36:34.502 --> 00:36:35.868
and that is dangerous.

00:36:38.368 --> 00:36:42.168
One of the unique features
of TikTok

00:36:42.301 --> 00:36:44.201
is that a child
could post a video,

00:36:44.301 --> 00:36:47.768
uh, dancing and having fun,
uh, and there's a feature

00:36:47.902 --> 00:36:50.435
on it called "Duets",
where you have children

00:36:50.535 --> 00:36:52.801
posting their own videos
and then you just have

00:36:52.934 --> 00:36:54.634
these older men
staring at them.

00:36:54.734 --> 00:36:57.601
♪ Good morning, beautiful

00:36:57.701 --> 00:37:00.068
♪ How was your night?

00:37:00.168 --> 00:37:02.635
SCOTT: Why are these older men
doing... you know,

00:37:02.735 --> 00:37:05.768
just part of "I wanna be
in a duet with you."

00:37:05.869 --> 00:37:09.102
We have one where the girl
went to kiss her camera

00:37:09.202 --> 00:37:11.902
at the same time one of these
older men kisses his camera,

00:37:12.002 --> 00:37:15.634
so it looks like you're having
an older man making out

00:37:15.734 --> 00:37:17.702
with-with a young girl.

00:37:17.802 --> 00:37:19.902
These people
are seeing your children.

00:37:20.002 --> 00:37:23.535
And they could contact them
through the TikTok app.

00:37:23.602 --> 00:37:25.868
There were child predators
before social media,

00:37:25.968 --> 00:37:27.734
but they didn't have
direct access

00:37:27.834 --> 00:37:30.235
to your child's inbox.

00:37:30.335 --> 00:37:32.068
♪ Walk up in dat bit'
too clean, I'm froze ♪

00:37:32.201 --> 00:37:33.635
♪ They don't fight you
where I'm from ♪

00:37:33.735 --> 00:37:35.401
♪ Like the beat,
I keep a drum ♪

00:37:35.502 --> 00:37:36.834
♪ You ain't got doubt,
lil' boy ♪

00:37:36.934 --> 00:37:38.635
I'm involved in working
on litigation

00:37:38.735 --> 00:37:41.235
against TikTok, and my son
is up in his bedroom,

00:37:41.335 --> 00:37:44.835
you know, doing livestream
of TikTok, it turned out.

00:37:44.935 --> 00:37:46.835
So, like, the work I do,
is that--is that ever

00:37:46.935 --> 00:37:49.134
on the back of your mind,
like, "I'm using all these apps,

00:37:49.235 --> 00:37:52.335
"and my dad has these lawsuits
against these companies

00:37:52.435 --> 00:37:54.268
for data
and protecting people..."

00:37:54.368 --> 00:37:55.802
Like, do you think
about that?

00:37:55.935 --> 00:37:57.901
No. I just think about it
'cause you come home

00:37:57.968 --> 00:37:59.568
and tell me
about all that stuff,

00:37:59.668 --> 00:38:02.034
and then I'm like,
technology is like someone

00:38:02.134 --> 00:38:05.802
my age is, like,
so essential to everything

00:38:05.902 --> 00:38:08.002
I do that it's, like,
I kind of have to live

00:38:08.102 --> 00:38:11.034
with the fact that there's gonna
be people that are profiting

00:38:11.134 --> 00:38:15.869
off my data, and I have
no real recourse for that.

00:38:15.935 --> 00:38:18.568
What's more concerning
is, like, the--the accuracy

00:38:18.702 --> 00:38:20.934
of the algorithm, like,
I could be talking

00:38:21.034 --> 00:38:24.001
about a movie
and then later that day,

00:38:24.134 --> 00:38:26.968
that movie, like, shows up
on my feed.

00:38:27.068 --> 00:38:28.635
And you're just talking
randomly to somebody

00:38:28.768 --> 00:38:30.068
- about the movie?
- That happens, like...

00:38:30.168 --> 00:38:32.934
way more often
than I'm comfortable with.

00:38:33.001 --> 00:38:34.535
And that
doesn't freak you out?

00:38:34.635 --> 00:38:36.435
Oh, it does, to some degree,
but, like, I guess

00:38:36.535 --> 00:38:37.567
I'm used to it
at this point,

00:38:37.634 --> 00:38:39.434
like it happens
so much.

00:38:41.401 --> 00:38:43.201
I am on the frontlines

00:38:43.268 --> 00:38:45.602
of fighting privacy battles
for children.

00:38:45.702 --> 00:38:49.468
And my kids know
that's what I do,

00:38:49.568 --> 00:38:51.935
but they're on the app,

00:38:52.069 --> 00:38:55.301
so it's a fight you fight,
but it's a difficult fight

00:38:55.401 --> 00:38:56.935
to win with your kids.

00:38:57.035 --> 00:39:00.335
You can only do so much,
and these companies know that.

00:39:00.435 --> 00:39:03.834
If there's no regulation of it,
you, as a parent,

00:39:03.934 --> 00:39:05.635
you don't have any control

00:39:05.735 --> 00:39:08.501
over what's being pushed
to these kids.

00:39:12.702 --> 00:39:15.834
AVRIEL:
Gen-Z is a unique generation.

00:39:15.901 --> 00:39:17.835
To be a digital native
is to be someone

00:39:17.935 --> 00:39:22.068
who doesn't know a world
without the internet.

00:39:22.168 --> 00:39:24.268
Teenagers are in a really
sensitive point

00:39:24.335 --> 00:39:25.802
in their development,

00:39:25.902 --> 00:39:28.401
both in terms of how
their brains are rewiring,

00:39:28.535 --> 00:39:31.701
and in terms of how they're
making sense of themselves

00:39:31.767 --> 00:39:33.033
and their place in the world.

00:39:35.068 --> 00:39:37.134
What ends up happening
is that the algorithms

00:39:37.235 --> 00:39:40.435
themselves end up shaping
the development

00:39:40.568 --> 00:39:42.201
of teenagers on these apps,

00:39:42.301 --> 00:39:46.934
in ways that we don't
understand at all.

00:39:49.002 --> 00:39:52.235
With any recommendation
algorithm, you run the risk

00:39:52.335 --> 00:39:56.435
of individuals who look
similar to each other,

00:39:56.502 --> 00:39:59.702
in terms of their activity,
getting pushed closer

00:39:59.802 --> 00:40:02.268
and closer and closer together
in terms of content

00:40:02.368 --> 00:40:03.934
that they're being recommended,

00:40:04.034 --> 00:40:06.268
and whatever information
is gonna confirm

00:40:06.335 --> 00:40:08.134
your preexisting beliefs.

00:40:09.835 --> 00:40:13.602
By not allowing people
from diverse perspectives

00:40:13.735 --> 00:40:15.802
to come into contact
with each other...

00:40:15.902 --> 00:40:19.201
it lessens their ability
for empathy.

00:40:19.301 --> 00:40:23.033
The algorithms are
reinforcing social disparities.

00:40:25.468 --> 00:40:26.768
It's not just TikTok.

00:40:26.835 --> 00:40:30.835
It is the technology
that TikTok relies on,

00:40:30.935 --> 00:40:35.834
but recommendation algorithms
have infiltrated

00:40:35.901 --> 00:40:38.034
all aspects of our society.

00:40:39.468 --> 00:40:43.468
Humans are relying
on recommendation systems

00:40:43.535 --> 00:40:45.734
to tell them
what decisions to make.

00:40:47.301 --> 00:40:51.702
And they are determining
our futures moment by moment,

00:40:51.802 --> 00:40:54.734
in ways that we have
very little control.

00:40:57.768 --> 00:40:59.368
If we fail to regulate
social media

00:40:59.468 --> 00:41:02.969
and the impact that it's
having on this generation,

00:41:03.069 --> 00:41:07.834
we're gonna see a lot
of marginalized teenagers

00:41:07.901 --> 00:41:10.768
experiencing harms
that none of us

00:41:10.902 --> 00:41:12.568
had the experience
and that none of us

00:41:12.702 --> 00:41:14.934
are prepared
to help them navigate.

00:41:23.968 --> 00:41:25.400
DEJA: I've been
in the spotlight

00:41:25.501 --> 00:41:26.801
since I was 16.

00:41:26.901 --> 00:41:29.968
And it is exhausting.

00:41:30.068 --> 00:41:32.602
There's definitely
this tension, uh, always

00:41:32.702 --> 00:41:34.001
between produce,
produce, produce,

00:41:34.101 --> 00:41:35.301
stay relevant,

00:41:35.435 --> 00:41:37.801
and produce things
that you're going to be

00:41:37.901 --> 00:41:39.235
proud of in ten years,

00:41:39.335 --> 00:41:41.534
and they don't always
go together.

00:41:41.634 --> 00:41:43.235
They can't.

00:41:43.335 --> 00:41:47.868
And... I think it leads me
to question now,

00:41:47.968 --> 00:41:49.535
"Am I doing the right thing?

00:41:49.635 --> 00:41:52.167
Did I make
the right choices?"

00:41:55.134 --> 00:41:57.134
I was raised
by a single mom,

00:41:57.235 --> 00:42:01.801
and I grew up in a household
that, like many,

00:42:01.901 --> 00:42:04.401
couldn't afford
the basics.

00:42:04.468 --> 00:42:10.235
Probably the hardest time
was when my mom started

00:42:10.301 --> 00:42:12.434
to decline
into substance abuse.

00:42:14.502 --> 00:42:17.268
When I was 15, I walked out
of my mom's house,

00:42:17.335 --> 00:42:21.068
because I couldn't get
what I needed there.

00:42:21.168 --> 00:42:22.702
And so, for me,
that looked

00:42:22.768 --> 00:42:24.134
like living
at a friend's house,

00:42:24.235 --> 00:42:27.502
until I graduated
and moved to college.

00:42:27.568 --> 00:42:29.668
I was seeing
a therapist at Columbia

00:42:29.768 --> 00:42:31.668
for the first time ever,
and I, like,

00:42:31.768 --> 00:42:33.934
went into her office
and I was shaking

00:42:34.034 --> 00:42:35.568
and crying
and she couldn't understand,

00:42:35.668 --> 00:42:37.201
and then she was telling me,
"You know,

00:42:37.301 --> 00:42:40.268
why don't you just delete
your social media?"

00:42:40.401 --> 00:42:42.802
I was like, "What you
don't understand

00:42:42.902 --> 00:42:44.401
"is that I can't delete
these accounts,

00:42:44.468 --> 00:42:47.667
"because they are what
keeps me financially stable.

00:42:47.767 --> 00:42:50.268
"I pay all of my own bills,

00:42:50.368 --> 00:42:52.868
and then, additionally,
I pay my mom's bills."

00:42:52.968 --> 00:42:56.468
And monetizing
on social media's given me

00:42:56.568 --> 00:42:59.868
the opportunity to do that."

00:42:59.968 --> 00:43:04.168
When I'm being abused
or harassed online,

00:43:04.268 --> 00:43:07.235
it's almost impossible
for me to step away.

00:43:07.335 --> 00:43:09.300
And it's kind of like
an abusive relationship

00:43:09.434 --> 00:43:10.602
in that regard.

00:43:10.668 --> 00:43:12.502
I have to open myself up
to this hate,

00:43:12.635 --> 00:43:15.234
because this is what creates
financial stability for me.

00:43:20.268 --> 00:43:24.401
What starts out as just
a place to be creative,

00:43:24.502 --> 00:43:25.801
and express yourself,

00:43:25.901 --> 00:43:29.901
becomes this rat race
for attention.

00:43:29.968 --> 00:43:31.901
And this need
to constantly chase

00:43:32.001 --> 00:43:33.701
a like count,
follow accounts,

00:43:33.767 --> 00:43:34.734
and view counts.

00:43:34.834 --> 00:43:36.535
A need to constantly perform

00:43:36.602 --> 00:43:38.467
in a way that can really
break people down.

00:43:39.902 --> 00:43:43.168
Social media influencer
was the fourth highest

00:43:43.235 --> 00:43:46.200
aspiration among
elementary school students.

00:43:48.001 --> 00:43:51.001
On the outside,
the life of influencers

00:43:51.068 --> 00:43:54.034
looks really fun
and glamorous.

00:43:54.134 --> 00:43:56.468
On the inside,
a lot of those influencers,

00:43:56.568 --> 00:43:59.268
in addition to getting
some external validation,

00:43:59.368 --> 00:44:02.668
they're getting
a lot of harassment and hate.

00:44:02.768 --> 00:44:06.934
They have to perform
happiness all of the time.

00:44:07.001 --> 00:44:10.634
Many of them are struggling
with depression,

00:44:10.734 --> 00:44:13.368
anxiety, burnout,

00:44:13.435 --> 00:44:19.201
and that is having
very real-world consequences.

00:44:19.268 --> 00:44:22.502
So that algorithm that's
always trying to figure out

00:44:22.635 --> 00:44:24.301
what the hottest trends are,

00:44:24.401 --> 00:44:26.335
is constantly lifting
something up

00:44:26.468 --> 00:44:28.367
to the stratosphere,
and then taking it

00:44:28.467 --> 00:44:29.767
back down again.

00:44:29.901 --> 00:44:31.502
To me, this is bigger
than TikTok.

00:44:31.602 --> 00:44:34.568
It's about who in our society
gets heard,

00:44:34.702 --> 00:44:37.767
and what you have to do
in our society to get heard.

00:44:46.235 --> 00:44:48.134
FEROZA: After my first video
about the Uyghurs

00:44:48.235 --> 00:44:51.901
was taken down, I knew I had
to disguise my video,

00:44:52.001 --> 00:44:54.301
so I grabbed
my pink eyelash curler,

00:44:54.401 --> 00:44:57.702
and I started curling
my lashes.

00:44:57.835 --> 00:44:59.535
This is the one
that started it all.

00:44:59.635 --> 00:45:01.068
Hi, guys,
I'm gonna teach you, guys,

00:45:01.134 --> 00:45:02.335
how to get long lashes,

00:45:02.435 --> 00:45:04.235
so the first thing
you need to do

00:45:04.335 --> 00:45:06.201
is grab your lash curler,
curl your lashes, obviously,

00:45:06.335 --> 00:45:08.034
then you're gonna
put them down

00:45:08.134 --> 00:45:09.568
and use your phone
that you're using right now

00:45:09.668 --> 00:45:11.435
to search up
what's happening in China,

00:45:11.568 --> 00:45:13.201
how they're getting
concentration camps,

00:45:13.301 --> 00:45:14.968
throwing innocent Muslims
in there,

00:45:15.068 --> 00:45:16.702
separating their families
from each other,

00:45:16.802 --> 00:45:18.235
kidnapping them,
murdering them,

00:45:18.335 --> 00:45:20.001
raping them,
forcing them...

00:45:20.101 --> 00:45:22.468
I spoke about that in just,
like, 40 seconds,

00:45:22.602 --> 00:45:24.901
and then I continued on
to the eyelash tutorial.

00:45:25.034 --> 00:45:26.235
...this is another Holocaust,

00:45:26.335 --> 00:45:28.001
yet no one is talking
about it.

00:45:28.101 --> 00:45:31.835
Please, be aware.
Please, spread awareness.

00:45:31.935 --> 00:45:35.101
And... yeah, so you can grab
your lash curler again...

00:45:35.201 --> 00:45:38.301
It reached millions,
it reached millions, and...

00:45:38.401 --> 00:45:39.301
people were...

00:45:39.401 --> 00:45:41.567
People were shocked
in the comments.

00:45:43.134 --> 00:45:45.034
You popped up in my "For You"
page and I was like,

00:45:45.134 --> 00:45:46.301
"Oh, my God, that's Feroza.

00:45:46.368 --> 00:45:48.101
I was, like,
"I sent this to her,"

00:45:48.201 --> 00:45:49.735
and I was like, "Why are you
on my 'For You' page?

00:45:49.835 --> 00:45:52.368
And why do you have, like, so
many likes?" It was like crazy.

00:45:52.468 --> 00:45:54.168
I had to tell my mom
right after that.

00:45:54.268 --> 00:45:55.868
I was like, "Ugh, people
are sending it now.

00:45:56.001 --> 00:45:58.101
I should tell my mom
I have TikTok."

00:45:58.201 --> 00:46:00.834
My mom, like,
we were watching the news,

00:46:00.934 --> 00:46:02.734
and she's like,
"Is that Feroza?"

00:46:02.834 --> 00:46:04.534
I was like, "Oh, my Gosh.

00:46:04.634 --> 00:46:05.801
Yes, it's my friend".

00:46:07.368 --> 00:46:10.635
A 40-second video
going viral in just one day.

00:46:10.735 --> 00:46:13.534
That's, like, the power
that TikTok holds.

00:46:15.068 --> 00:46:17.468
So I decided to post
two more videos, uh,

00:46:17.568 --> 00:46:20.068
the following two days,
to just post more information

00:46:20.168 --> 00:46:21.668
on how to help.

00:46:21.768 --> 00:46:23.968
Hey, guys, you wanted
a second part to the video

00:46:24.034 --> 00:46:25.435
on how to get longer lashes,
so here it is.

00:46:25.535 --> 00:46:27.001
And, by the way,
I say that so TikTok

00:46:27.101 --> 00:46:28.668
doesn't take down my videos.

00:46:28.802 --> 00:46:32.667
I don't think TikTok noticed
what I posted at first,

00:46:32.767 --> 00:46:34.301
and then the following day,

00:46:34.435 --> 00:46:36.635
it was like a Monday,
I wake up at 5:00 am

00:46:36.735 --> 00:46:40.567
for school, and I go on TikTok
to see how many views

00:46:40.667 --> 00:46:42.034
the next two videos got,

00:46:42.101 --> 00:46:45.168
and I see that I can't even
go on TikTok.

00:46:45.301 --> 00:46:47.100
My--my account's suspended.

00:46:48.702 --> 00:46:51.335
"Your account is
temporarily suspended

00:46:51.435 --> 00:46:55.435
because it goes against
community guidelines."

00:46:55.535 --> 00:46:58.535
Nothing from my posts
violates community guidelines.

00:46:58.635 --> 00:47:02.602
I show nothing of hate speech,
I show no profanity,

00:47:02.668 --> 00:47:05.534
everything I spoke
about was factual evidence.

00:47:06.869 --> 00:47:09.768
My first thought after seeing
this black screen

00:47:09.902 --> 00:47:13.934
on my phone was, "I'm not
letting them silence me."

00:47:14.034 --> 00:47:16.602
I--I quickly made
a Twitter account.

00:47:16.735 --> 00:47:21.567
I quickly posted on Instagram
that, "Hey, I was silenced

00:47:21.667 --> 00:47:22.869
for speaking up",

00:47:22.969 --> 00:47:25.802
and I'm not gonna let them
get away with that.

00:47:25.902 --> 00:47:28.634
And I asked people
to continue sharing the video.

00:47:30.034 --> 00:47:32.968
I'm so grateful
that people heard me

00:47:33.068 --> 00:47:36.101
saying that my voice
was taken away.

00:47:36.235 --> 00:47:37.834
17-year-old Feroza Aziz...

00:47:37.934 --> 00:47:39.401
[speaks in foreign language]

00:47:39.468 --> 00:47:41.702
NEWSCASTER: Joining us now
is Feroza Aziz...

00:47:41.835 --> 00:47:44.834
FEROZA: In less than a few
days, I was on Al-Jazeera,

00:47:44.934 --> 00:47:46.635
BBC, CNN...

00:47:46.702 --> 00:47:51.001
More than 1.5 million people
watched it just on TikTok.

00:47:51.101 --> 00:47:52.801
What kind of responses
have you had?

00:47:52.901 --> 00:47:54.335
Just from regular people...

00:47:54.435 --> 00:47:56.768
Half of them is positive,
and the other half

00:47:56.869 --> 00:47:59.101
is, "Well, I don't know
this is happening.

00:47:59.201 --> 00:48:00.767
"Why am I hearing this
on TikTok

00:48:00.834 --> 00:48:02.401
and why not on the news?"

00:48:02.502 --> 00:48:05.268
I did, uhm, feel
a little bit upset, though,

00:48:05.368 --> 00:48:07.502
because I thought, as if
more attention was brought

00:48:07.635 --> 00:48:10.101
to me being silenced
than to what I was actually

00:48:10.201 --> 00:48:11.368
speaking about.

00:48:11.468 --> 00:48:13.535
I remember seeing
headlines saying,

00:48:13.668 --> 00:48:16.535
"Oh, Beijing-owned app
takes down video."

00:48:16.635 --> 00:48:20.334
And not, "Oh, like, there's
a Uyghur genocide happening."

00:48:22.235 --> 00:48:24.635
I felt very overwhelmed
with the news coverage.

00:48:24.735 --> 00:48:26.802
One of my idols--
I have, like, her picture

00:48:26.935 --> 00:48:31.400
on my wall, mm, AOC retweeted
an article of me.

00:48:32.768 --> 00:48:35.268
I didn't expect, uhm,
politicians from China

00:48:35.368 --> 00:48:36.835
to even comment on it.

00:48:36.935 --> 00:48:39.467
China's Prime Ministry
said it had no specifics

00:48:39.601 --> 00:48:40.601
of this case.

00:48:42.635 --> 00:48:44.635
You saying the content
is still on the TikTok account?

00:48:44.735 --> 00:48:46.401
I'm not aware
of the situation.

00:48:46.468 --> 00:48:47.602
How could I know
what's happening

00:48:47.668 --> 00:48:49.435
on the account
of one individual?

00:48:49.502 --> 00:48:51.535
I thought I had
the freedom of speech,

00:48:51.668 --> 00:48:55.268
but I guess... under TikTok
that's not possible

00:48:55.368 --> 00:48:57.767
for me to have that right.

00:49:03.502 --> 00:49:06.568
DAVID POLGAR: Content
moderation is a process

00:49:06.668 --> 00:49:08.401
of determining
what's appropriate

00:49:08.502 --> 00:49:11.502
and what's not
appropriate online.

00:49:11.635 --> 00:49:14.668
One of the natural tensions
becomes if you have

00:49:14.768 --> 00:49:17.969
a company but it's
all throughout the globe,

00:49:18.069 --> 00:49:21.467
do you adjust to the cultural
norms of another country?

00:49:22.902 --> 00:49:25.602
And a lot of people,
when on Facebook or TikTok

00:49:25.702 --> 00:49:28.868
or Instagram, they talk
about it by using concepts

00:49:28.968 --> 00:49:30.502
like freedom of speech,

00:49:30.602 --> 00:49:35.701
because all throughout society,
specifically American society,

00:49:35.801 --> 00:49:38.335
we have debated.

00:49:38.401 --> 00:49:40.668
What's appropriate?
How you balance

00:49:40.768 --> 00:49:43.468
individual autonomy
and expression

00:49:43.602 --> 00:49:45.168
with the societal impact?

00:49:45.235 --> 00:49:48.767
That used to reside
in governmental bodies.

00:49:52.068 --> 00:49:54.335
With social media,
the power

00:49:54.435 --> 00:49:55.602
of determining speech

00:49:55.668 --> 00:49:58.535
has been far
too consolidated.

00:49:58.668 --> 00:50:00.934
Major tech companies...
if they have the power

00:50:01.068 --> 00:50:04.268
of deciding what's okay
and what's not okay

00:50:04.368 --> 00:50:07.168
with what I say,
if they have the power

00:50:07.301 --> 00:50:09.068
to deplatform,

00:50:09.134 --> 00:50:13.001
that puts a tremendous
level of power

00:50:13.134 --> 00:50:15.235
in an unelected official.

00:50:15.335 --> 00:50:16.934
That's antidemocratic.

00:50:20.635 --> 00:50:22.201
I mean, the think
about TikTok is

00:50:22.301 --> 00:50:23.968
it's, so it's--it's
Chinese-owned,

00:50:24.034 --> 00:50:26.869
or just that, owners,
they don't control it.

00:50:27.002 --> 00:50:31.201
In fact, TikTok takes
a much, much stronger attitude

00:50:31.268 --> 00:50:33.268
against the sort
of content that...

00:50:33.368 --> 00:50:34.802
well, that
the Chinese government

00:50:34.902 --> 00:50:37.268
wouldn't like to see
on a social media app.

00:50:37.368 --> 00:50:39.535
There's no orders coming down
from up high,

00:50:39.668 --> 00:50:43.668
there's just the understanding
that you will do what Beijing

00:50:43.768 --> 00:50:46.201
wants and you'll try
and guess what they want

00:50:46.301 --> 00:50:48.467
and do it
without being asked.

00:50:58.635 --> 00:51:01.401
You know, I might--I might
go livestream

00:51:01.468 --> 00:51:03.435
on Duoyin a little bit.

00:51:03.502 --> 00:51:06.034
That's what's hot
on Duoyin, but

00:51:06.134 --> 00:51:09.667
there's one problem,
'cause all the restrictions

00:51:09.734 --> 00:51:11.868
of my tattoos.

00:51:11.934 --> 00:51:13.801
They might shut me down.

00:51:13.901 --> 00:51:14.868
Here we go.

00:51:14.968 --> 00:51:16.634
We're live!

00:51:16.734 --> 00:51:18.368
Tattoos? No.

00:51:18.468 --> 00:51:21.601
Also the piercing? No.

00:51:35.435 --> 00:51:39.268
Ah! Sorry, sorry.

00:51:39.368 --> 00:51:41.602
You see this?

00:51:41.702 --> 00:51:45.734
Because I have tattoos,
I can't--I can't go livestream.

00:51:56.535 --> 00:51:58.602
That's--that's really messed up.
You know?

00:51:58.735 --> 00:52:00.435
Yeah, on Duoyin
you have to watch

00:52:00.535 --> 00:52:02.268
everything that you say.

00:52:02.401 --> 00:52:06.201
Just one word...
one frame

00:52:06.301 --> 00:52:08.234
could set your whole video off.

00:52:10.802 --> 00:52:14.834
For the first time in history,
a person can write something

00:52:14.901 --> 00:52:17.968
or say something
and have it reach

00:52:18.101 --> 00:52:20.368
a large segment of the world.

00:52:20.502 --> 00:52:23.101
So this brings up the topic
of censorship,

00:52:23.201 --> 00:52:24.969
which is really tricky.

00:52:25.069 --> 00:52:29.567
The internet allows
for the fastest spread of ideas

00:52:29.667 --> 00:52:31.535
in the history of the world.

00:52:31.635 --> 00:52:33.168
China with
the great firewall

00:52:33.268 --> 00:52:36.702
and with government moderation
has taken a very active hand

00:52:36.802 --> 00:52:39.568
in controlling what topics
are discussed,

00:52:39.635 --> 00:52:42.168
what ideas are acceptable
to discuss on the internet.

00:52:42.268 --> 00:52:46.401
We've never had to grapple
with questions around censorship

00:52:46.502 --> 00:52:48.802
in an era where
so many people have

00:52:48.869 --> 00:52:51.667
a global megaphone now
in their hands.

00:52:55.568 --> 00:52:58.101
It was back in late December
when Dr. Li Wenliang

00:52:58.201 --> 00:52:59.602
first warned friends
on WeChat

00:52:59.702 --> 00:53:02.168
about a SARS-like
disease going around.

00:53:02.268 --> 00:53:04.702
Li sent a group message
saying that a test result

00:53:04.802 --> 00:53:06.602
from a patient quarantined
at the hospital

00:53:06.702 --> 00:53:09.835
where he worked showed
a patient had a coronavirus,

00:53:09.935 --> 00:53:12.934
but hours after hitting send,
Wuhan City health officials

00:53:13.034 --> 00:53:14.401
tracked Li down,

00:53:14.502 --> 00:53:16.968
questioning where he got
the information.

00:53:27.301 --> 00:53:32.901
Dr. Li sounded the alarm early
in the COVID-19 outbreak.

00:53:32.968 --> 00:53:35.901
He soon faced
government intimidation,

00:53:35.968 --> 00:53:39.534
and then contracted
the virus.

00:53:39.634 --> 00:53:41.268
When he passed away,

00:53:41.368 --> 00:53:43.901
I was among
many Chinese médecins

00:53:44.001 --> 00:53:46.834
who expressed grief
and outrage

00:53:46.934 --> 00:53:49.401
at the events on Weibo,

00:53:49.468 --> 00:53:52.534
only to have
my account deleted.

00:53:54.568 --> 00:53:57.969
I felt guilt
more than anger.

00:53:58.069 --> 00:54:01.934
At the time, I was
a tech worker at ByteDance,

00:54:02.034 --> 00:54:05.335
where I helped develop tools
and platforms

00:54:05.435 --> 00:54:07.401
for content moderation.

00:54:07.502 --> 00:54:11.502
In other words,
I had helped build a system

00:54:11.602 --> 00:54:14.768
that censored accounts
like mine.

00:54:14.835 --> 00:54:18.902
The technologies we created
supported the entire company's

00:54:19.035 --> 00:54:22.435
content moderation,
including Duoyin at home,

00:54:22.535 --> 00:54:25.334
and its international
equivalent, TikTok.

00:54:28.668 --> 00:54:32.101
There was a long,
constantly updated list

00:54:32.201 --> 00:54:36.702
of sensitive words,
dates and names.

00:54:36.768 --> 00:54:39.702
If a user mentioned
a sensitive term,

00:54:39.768 --> 00:54:43.101
they would shut down the
ongoing livestreaming session

00:54:43.168 --> 00:54:47.001
and even suspend
or delete the account.

00:54:48.468 --> 00:54:50.567
Many of my colleagues
felt uneasy

00:54:50.667 --> 00:54:53.201
about what we were doing,

00:54:53.301 --> 00:54:57.134
but we all felt that
there was nothing we can do.

00:54:58.768 --> 00:55:01.301
Dr. Li warned
his colleagues and friends

00:55:01.401 --> 00:55:04.335
about an unknown virus.

00:55:04.435 --> 00:55:07.001
He was punished for that.

00:55:07.134 --> 00:55:11.034
Just imagine,
had any social media platform

00:55:11.168 --> 00:55:13.002
been able to reject
the government's

00:55:13.102 --> 00:55:17.701
censorship directives,
perhaps millions of lives

00:55:17.801 --> 00:55:21.968
would have been saved today.

00:55:24.035 --> 00:55:26.268
NEWSCASTER: TikTok faces
government investigation

00:55:26.368 --> 00:55:27.934
in over seven countries,

00:55:28.034 --> 00:55:30.335
all citing concerns
over national security

00:55:30.468 --> 00:55:33.234
and content moderation.

00:55:42.602 --> 00:55:47.702
CHRIS: In 2019, we had someone
contact us,

00:55:47.802 --> 00:55:51.168
claiming to have internal
information and access

00:55:51.268 --> 00:55:54.801
to internal TikTok
moderation guidelines.

00:55:56.301 --> 00:56:01.235
And I don't think we realized,
at the time,

00:56:01.301 --> 00:56:04.068
how big the story would get.

00:56:04.134 --> 00:56:06.100
[cell phone buzzing]

00:56:08.035 --> 00:56:13.702
What we saw was that TikTok
was very explicit

00:56:13.768 --> 00:56:17.001
about what it wanted to have
on the platform,

00:56:17.101 --> 00:56:20.234
and what it didn't want
to show on the platform.

00:56:21.701 --> 00:56:24.467
TikTok rarely deletes content.

00:56:24.601 --> 00:56:25.601
They don't have to.

00:56:25.701 --> 00:56:27.034
They can just hide it.

00:56:28.468 --> 00:56:31.835
The guidelines were explicitly
instructing moderators

00:56:31.935 --> 00:56:38.034
to deal with people who are
LGBTQ or had disabilities

00:56:38.101 --> 00:56:41.235
or for whatever reason
TikTok felt

00:56:41.301 --> 00:56:46.100
were vulnerable to bullying
by hiding their content.

00:56:49.368 --> 00:56:50.702
So it was in Mandarin,

00:56:50.768 --> 00:56:53.501
and underneath
a fairly awkward

00:56:53.601 --> 00:56:55.301
English translation,

00:56:55.368 --> 00:56:59.401
so it says "subjects
who is susceptible to bullying

00:56:59.502 --> 00:57:03.667
or harassment, based on their
physical or mental condition.

00:57:03.767 --> 00:57:07.934
"Example, facial disfigurement,

00:57:08.068 --> 00:57:11.667
"autism,
Down syndrome,

00:57:11.734 --> 00:57:13.468
"disabled people or people

00:57:13.535 --> 00:57:16.201
"with some facial
problems, etc.

00:57:16.335 --> 00:57:20.001
"Content of subjects likely
to incite cyberbullying

00:57:20.134 --> 00:57:24.834
will be allowed,
but marked with risk tag 4."

00:57:27.168 --> 00:57:29.568
Basically, and like...
different levels

00:57:29.635 --> 00:57:32.201
of what we call
"algorithmic punishment"

00:57:32.301 --> 00:57:33.768
or "algorithmic visibility,"

00:57:33.835 --> 00:57:36.901
so they were put in a category
called "Risk 4,"

00:57:37.034 --> 00:57:39.868
which means that as soon
as their videos

00:57:39.968 --> 00:57:43.235
would reach a certain threshold
of views,

00:57:43.301 --> 00:57:47.567
they would automatically also be
taken from the "For You" feed.

00:57:52.602 --> 00:57:56.968
Later on,
other leaks surfaced.

00:58:18.134 --> 00:58:21.734
I actually have the ugly
content policy

00:58:21.834 --> 00:58:22.934
right in front of me,

00:58:23.034 --> 00:58:25.401
So... crazy to read this.

00:58:25.535 --> 00:58:28.335
"Abnormal body shape,
chubby,

00:58:28.435 --> 00:58:30.101
"ugly facial looks,

00:58:30.168 --> 00:58:32.801
"not limited
to 'disformatted' face,

00:58:32.901 --> 00:58:35.068
"fangs, lack of front teeth,

00:58:35.168 --> 00:58:37.635
senior people
with too many wrinkles..."

00:58:37.735 --> 00:58:39.868
And it just goes
on and on, right?

00:58:51.001 --> 00:58:52.801
NEWSCASTER:
In a statement, TikTok said...

00:59:08.201 --> 00:59:10.868
It's just a lot of the "move
fast and break things"

00:59:10.968 --> 00:59:12.134
attitude that we've seen

00:59:12.235 --> 00:59:15.301
from other
Silicon Valley companies.

00:59:15.435 --> 00:59:20.133
It's not like only TikTok
was doing these things.

00:59:22.368 --> 00:59:27.668
Obviously, the representation
that we see in media

00:59:27.735 --> 00:59:32.801
is not an accurate picture
of society,

00:59:32.934 --> 00:59:35.101
but I think there is
a difference

00:59:35.201 --> 00:59:38.835
that, you know, no TV station,
nor does Hollywood

00:59:38.969 --> 00:59:43.001
pretends to be open access
to everybody,

00:59:43.101 --> 00:59:45.068
whereas this is a promise

00:59:45.201 --> 00:59:49.068
that social media
platforms make.

00:59:52.268 --> 00:59:53.902
Am I the only one
that has noticed

00:59:54.035 --> 00:59:57.168
that Black creators get
least favored by the algorithm?

00:59:57.268 --> 00:59:58.968
How is it that my followers
are not seeing my video?

00:59:59.068 --> 01:00:00.502
What's up
with that algorithm?

01:00:00.602 --> 01:00:03.801
I've had some of my TikTok
videos get zero views,

01:00:03.901 --> 01:00:06.001
and I've been shadowbanned.

01:00:06.101 --> 01:00:09.767
EMILY: Shadowbanning
on TikTok is just when

01:00:09.901 --> 01:00:11.635
there's something
in the algorithm

01:00:11.735 --> 01:00:14.134
that just kind
of shuts you out completely.

01:00:14.235 --> 01:00:16.934
They just like find a way
to make it

01:00:17.034 --> 01:00:19.400
so nobody sees
any of your content.

01:00:22.368 --> 01:00:24.468
I am an apprenticing
occularist,

01:00:24.602 --> 01:00:26.868
an artist who works
in the medical field, uh,

01:00:27.001 --> 01:00:29.834
making prosthetic eyes.

01:00:31.101 --> 01:00:33.868
TikTok's algorithm
is very good.

01:00:33.968 --> 01:00:35.935
You know, you can
create an account

01:00:36.035 --> 01:00:38.301
and within a couple of hours
or a couple of days

01:00:38.401 --> 01:00:40.701
that algorithm
knows who you are.

01:00:40.801 --> 01:00:42.902
You know?

01:00:43.002 --> 01:00:45.568
So for that same algorithm
to kind of just...

01:00:45.702 --> 01:00:48.368
rip the rug out from thousands
of Black creators,

01:00:48.502 --> 01:00:51.901
it kind of pulls you back
for a second.

01:00:51.968 --> 01:00:53.101
We know the history

01:00:53.201 --> 01:00:54.435
that this nation
has with Black people.

01:00:54.535 --> 01:00:56.734
We know the savagery
that they had to endure

01:00:56.834 --> 01:00:58.235
because of colonizers,

01:00:58.368 --> 01:00:59.968
and the savagery that
they still have to endure...

01:01:00.068 --> 01:01:02.335
I got on, and I had made
a video talking

01:01:02.435 --> 01:01:06.468
about how my "For You" page
was only of white creators

01:01:06.568 --> 01:01:10.934
and by that point,
I would say I had...

01:01:11.034 --> 01:01:14.535
150 to 200,000 followers.

01:01:14.635 --> 01:01:17.902
And so I had a video sitting,
that I've published

01:01:17.969 --> 01:01:20.901
for three hours,
and it said zero views.

01:01:21.001 --> 01:01:23.435
That was the first time
where I was, like,

01:01:23.568 --> 01:01:25.668
this is blatant shadowbanning.

01:01:25.768 --> 01:01:28.134
Nobody's seeing us
'cause they're ensuring

01:01:28.235 --> 01:01:29.801
that nobody can.

01:01:30.701 --> 01:01:32.168
NEWSCASTER: Tech troubles.

01:01:32.268 --> 01:01:35.401
TikTok says a technical glitch
is making it appear

01:01:35.502 --> 01:01:38.068
as if posts with the hashtag
"#blacklivesmatter"

01:01:38.168 --> 01:01:40.601
and "#georgefloyd"
received no views.

01:01:40.667 --> 01:01:42.001
The video platform says

01:01:42.101 --> 01:01:44.235
it's dealing
with a display issue

01:01:44.301 --> 01:01:46.468
adding that videos
featuring those tags

01:01:46.568 --> 01:01:49.735
have amassed more
than two billion views.

01:01:49.869 --> 01:01:52.468
Normally when you go
to use a tag on TikTok,

01:01:52.568 --> 01:01:57.902
it'll tell you how many views,
have been on that tag.

01:01:57.969 --> 01:02:00.201
And you go to write
"blacklivesmatter",

01:02:00.335 --> 01:02:03.602
and it says zero
or, you know, "#blm,"

01:02:03.668 --> 01:02:06.601
"georgefloyd,"
"ahmaudarbery," anything.

01:02:06.701 --> 01:02:08.802
It would tell you zero.

01:02:08.869 --> 01:02:10.134
NEWSCASTER: TikTok said
in a statement,

01:02:10.268 --> 01:02:11.367
which reads in part:

01:02:12.467 --> 01:02:13.435
We want to..."

01:02:13.535 --> 01:02:15.235
"Last week,
a technical glitch made it

01:02:15.335 --> 01:02:19.668
"temporarily appear as if posts
uploaded using #blacklivesmatter

01:02:19.735 --> 01:02:23.068
"and #georgefloyd
would receive zero views.

01:02:23.134 --> 01:02:24.335
"We understand
that many assume

01:02:24.435 --> 01:02:26.201
"this bug to be
an intentional act

01:02:26.335 --> 01:02:28.301
"to suppress experiences
and invalidate the emotions

01:02:28.401 --> 01:02:29.901
"felt by the Black community,

01:02:29.968 --> 01:02:31.268
"and we know
we have work to do

01:02:31.368 --> 01:02:33.735
to regain
and repair that trust."

01:02:33.835 --> 01:02:35.734
Kind of like the normal
check points

01:02:35.801 --> 01:02:37.034
that people go through.

01:02:37.134 --> 01:02:38.601
"We're growing,
we're learning,

01:02:38.701 --> 01:02:41.668
we're trying to do better."

01:02:41.802 --> 01:02:44.335
I would love to believe
that it was a technical glitch.

01:02:44.435 --> 01:02:46.301
'Cause you're like,
"That's absolutely possible.

01:02:46.435 --> 01:02:49.535
100%," but it's
so oddly specific

01:02:49.635 --> 01:02:52.868
that I can't attribute that
to just being a glitch.

01:02:54.368 --> 01:02:56.501
SHELLY: TikTok has said
that their content moderation

01:02:56.601 --> 01:02:57.968
has changed.

01:02:58.101 --> 01:03:00.168
Some of what you see on there
backs that up.

01:03:00.301 --> 01:03:03.535
The sense that you see
a lot of activism there.

01:03:03.602 --> 01:03:05.168
You saw Black Lives
Matter content,

01:03:05.235 --> 01:03:07.568
eventually be
up on there.

01:03:07.668 --> 01:03:11.435
But it's constantly changing,
it's a constant black box.

01:03:11.535 --> 01:03:15.034
We have no idea what's going
into any of these algorithms.

01:03:15.134 --> 01:03:17.968
And there's zero transparency.

01:03:21.335 --> 01:03:23.068
NEWSCASTER: ByteDance,
the Beijing-based

01:03:23.168 --> 01:03:26.068
owner of TikTok,
apologized for the suspension,

01:03:26.134 --> 01:03:28.401
blaming a human
moderation error.

01:03:28.502 --> 01:03:31.235
And TikTok says it doesn't
apply Chinese moderation

01:03:31.335 --> 01:03:34.200
principles to its product
outside of mainland China.

01:03:35.935 --> 01:03:39.934
FEROZA: After a few days,
TikTok gave my account back.

01:03:40.001 --> 01:03:41.535
People don't seem
to understand

01:03:41.635 --> 01:03:44.168
what it feels like to have
someone try to take away

01:03:44.235 --> 01:03:47.268
your voice, and then
they give it back to you.

01:03:47.401 --> 01:03:49.901
It's my voice,
and them deciding

01:03:50.034 --> 01:03:51.235
to give me back
my account

01:03:51.335 --> 01:03:52.702
after taking it away.
It was...

01:03:52.835 --> 01:03:54.834
as if they could control
what I could say

01:03:54.934 --> 01:03:56.535
and what I could do,

01:03:56.668 --> 01:03:59.467
and it's just disgusting
to see an app do that.

01:04:01.468 --> 01:04:03.968
'Til this day,
my classmates will post

01:04:04.068 --> 01:04:06.034
on my social media accounts,

01:04:06.168 --> 01:04:08.035
leaving hate comments.

01:04:08.169 --> 01:04:10.368
I can delete the comments,
but I'm gonna go to class

01:04:10.468 --> 01:04:12.168
the next day, and I'm gonna
sit next to the person

01:04:12.268 --> 01:04:15.368
who hates my guts,
for just speaking on issues

01:04:15.468 --> 01:04:17.968
I believe
need to be spoken about.

01:04:19.468 --> 01:04:22.802
When you're so invested on
apps like TikTok,

01:04:22.869 --> 01:04:26.235
when something bad happens
on social media,

01:04:26.301 --> 01:04:27.467
your life is torn apart.

01:04:32.368 --> 01:04:35.767
Story time. We all worked
on the Kamala Harris campaign,

01:04:35.901 --> 01:04:37.602
in the presidential primary.

01:04:37.735 --> 01:04:41.501
And this is your sign to get
a tattoo with your work besties.

01:04:41.567 --> 01:04:43.001
For the people.

01:04:43.134 --> 01:04:44.401
DEJA:
I was 19 years old

01:04:44.502 --> 01:04:46.468
when I started
on the Kamala Harris campaign.

01:04:46.568 --> 01:04:49.801
I withdrew
my sophomore year at Columbia.

01:04:49.901 --> 01:04:51.401
And it was a huge move.

01:04:51.502 --> 01:04:53.401
I think that our perspective
as young people

01:04:53.502 --> 01:04:55.968
is what led us to think
TikTok is important.

01:04:56.034 --> 01:04:57.401
There's a lot
of young people there.

01:04:57.468 --> 01:05:00.901
We were the first campaign
that was putting content

01:05:01.001 --> 01:05:02.468
on TikTok directly.

01:05:02.568 --> 01:05:04.968
I feel like we have to take
a moment for this... this.

01:05:05.068 --> 01:05:05.968
Oh, thank you.

01:05:06.068 --> 01:05:07.101
Oh. Yes.

01:05:07.201 --> 01:05:09.901
All of Jessica's iconic shots.

01:05:09.968 --> 01:05:12.235
So good.

01:05:12.368 --> 01:05:15.435
I mean, you pioneered
vertical video.

01:05:15.568 --> 01:05:17.801
I--I love that shot
in the rain.

01:05:17.901 --> 01:05:19.502
She was boogie-ing it down.

01:05:19.602 --> 01:05:22.368
That one was everywhere.
I love that.

01:05:22.468 --> 01:05:25.001
I just remember, like,
all those airplane videos

01:05:25.068 --> 01:05:26.734
really making the rounds
on TikTok.

01:05:26.834 --> 01:05:27.934
Absolutely.

01:05:28.034 --> 01:05:29.301
They were
showing up everywhere.

01:05:29.435 --> 01:05:30.835
And it was interesting
to see the progression.

01:05:30.902 --> 01:05:33.835
Like, when different candidates
started to have, like,

01:05:33.935 --> 01:05:37.034
their official TikToks
and what kind of content

01:05:37.101 --> 01:05:39.101
did they made on TikTok.

01:05:39.201 --> 01:05:41.201
I think we felt like
we were kind of starting

01:05:41.301 --> 01:05:42.468
to hit our stride on TikTok,

01:05:42.535 --> 01:05:45.235
and then we, like,
had to stop.

01:05:45.335 --> 01:05:48.101
That email, that dreadful,
dreadful email we got.

01:05:48.201 --> 01:05:49.502
The dark day
when we were told

01:05:49.568 --> 01:05:52.134
that we couldn't be
on TikTok anymore.

01:05:52.235 --> 01:05:53.735
DEJA: I get this email that,

01:05:53.835 --> 01:05:56.635
because of security reasons,
we were all being asked

01:05:56.768 --> 01:06:01.235
to delete TikTok on government
and military phones...

01:06:01.301 --> 01:06:03.435
That was a sad email.
That was a tough one.

01:06:03.502 --> 01:06:05.602
NEWSCASTER: TikTok ownership
by a Chinese parent company

01:06:05.702 --> 01:06:07.335
subject to Chinese
surveillance law

01:06:07.435 --> 01:06:10.101
has made the app's
popularity problematic,

01:06:10.201 --> 01:06:12.034
causing concerns
from the US Army,

01:06:12.134 --> 01:06:14.301
the Navy, the TSA,
the DNC, the RNC,

01:06:14.368 --> 01:06:15.702
and the Biden campaign,

01:06:15.768 --> 01:06:17.701
all banning TikTok
from their phones.

01:06:19.468 --> 01:06:21.268
SHELLY: There were many young
soldiers in the military

01:06:21.368 --> 01:06:23.768
who were using TikTok,
they were in all sorts

01:06:23.869 --> 01:06:27.001
of US military bases
around the world,

01:06:27.101 --> 01:06:28.368
and so they would go

01:06:28.468 --> 01:06:29.969
and they would do
pushup contests.

01:06:30.069 --> 01:06:32.802
They would, you know,
do tours of the bases, then...

01:06:32.869 --> 01:06:35.702
You know, they were really
showing some pretty...

01:06:35.835 --> 01:06:38.734
top secret assets
to anyone in the world

01:06:38.868 --> 01:06:40.034
wanting to see them,

01:06:40.101 --> 01:06:41.702
and this was
at a moment where...

01:06:41.802 --> 01:06:44.935
people were
not taking TikTok seriously.

01:06:45.035 --> 01:06:49.001
But what they realized was
this silly little kids app

01:06:49.101 --> 01:06:50.702
was collecting a ton
of information

01:06:50.768 --> 01:06:55.134
on GPS, on location,
of all these soldiers,

01:06:55.235 --> 01:06:56.702
and all of that,
in the end,

01:06:56.802 --> 01:07:00.869
was heading back
into a Chinese company.

01:07:00.969 --> 01:07:02.802
♪ It took too long,
it took too long ♪

01:07:02.902 --> 01:07:05.502
♪ It took too long
for you to call back ♪

01:07:05.602 --> 01:07:07.834
♪ And normally I would
just forget that... ♪

01:07:07.901 --> 01:07:09.934
From a nation state's
perspective,

01:07:10.068 --> 01:07:12.101
well, data is the new oil.

01:07:12.201 --> 01:07:15.335
If I can understand
the connections between people,

01:07:15.435 --> 01:07:17.502
I can start to target
my misinformation,

01:07:17.568 --> 01:07:20.168
so that one person is likely
to take actions

01:07:20.268 --> 01:07:22.868
in the real world,
like vote.

01:07:24.268 --> 01:07:26.401
So the data
that TikTok collects

01:07:26.502 --> 01:07:28.335
is on par with what
other social media companies

01:07:28.435 --> 01:07:31.002
are collecting.

01:07:31.102 --> 01:07:35.001
So, the question really becomes,
"Why is TikTok being picked on?"

01:07:35.101 --> 01:07:37.468
Xenophobia should certainly
be considered a part,

01:07:37.568 --> 01:07:39.702
as part of this, we've seen
a rise in hate crimes

01:07:39.835 --> 01:07:42.268
against Asian-Americans,
and so I think,

01:07:42.368 --> 01:07:44.734
being very clear
about the differences,

01:07:44.868 --> 01:07:47.535
uh, of the practices
of a government

01:07:47.668 --> 01:07:50.268
versus the people
that happen to reside

01:07:50.368 --> 01:07:51.702
inside of that nation state.

01:07:51.802 --> 01:07:54.068
After all, I don't agree
with 100% of the things

01:07:54.134 --> 01:07:56.101
our nation does.

01:07:56.201 --> 01:07:58.334
♪ I'm singing Trump 2020

01:07:58.434 --> 01:08:00.235
♪ Trump 2020

01:08:00.335 --> 01:08:04.734
♪ Trump 2020,
Trump 2020 ♪

01:08:06.235 --> 01:08:09.602
ALEYSHA: When I first found
Gen-Z comedians online,

01:08:09.668 --> 01:08:12.435
it was so inspiring to me
as a comedian,

01:08:12.535 --> 01:08:15.968
in seeing how easy it is
to build traction

01:08:16.068 --> 01:08:18.001
on apps like TikTok.

01:08:19.834 --> 01:08:21.702
One of my friends
had posted

01:08:21.802 --> 01:08:23.702
that Donald Trump's
Tulsa rally

01:08:23.802 --> 01:08:26.502
had free tickets,
and my first thought

01:08:26.602 --> 01:08:30.502
was just how easy is it
to get a ticket.

01:08:30.568 --> 01:08:32.401
Guys, Donald Trump
is having a rally.

01:08:32.502 --> 01:08:34.134
All you had to do
is give your phone number

01:08:34.235 --> 01:08:38.401
and so I got two tickets,
but I totally forgot

01:08:38.502 --> 01:08:41.968
that I had to pick
every individual piece

01:08:42.034 --> 01:08:43.901
of lint off of my floor,

01:08:44.034 --> 01:08:46.801
and then sort them by size,
so I can't...

01:08:46.901 --> 01:08:48.735
make it for Friday.

01:08:48.835 --> 01:08:53.268
I had realized
the potential of this.

01:08:53.368 --> 01:08:56.435
You should be really careful
going to do this, you know.

01:08:56.535 --> 01:08:58.802
You don't want
a bunch of empty seats.

01:08:58.902 --> 01:09:01.734
And when I posted it,
I didn't think much of it...

01:09:03.835 --> 01:09:06.869
...but in two days
it just blew up.

01:09:07.002 --> 01:09:10.435
Oh, my God! I just registered
for Trump's rally,

01:09:10.535 --> 01:09:13.034
and I'm so excited to not go.

01:09:13.134 --> 01:09:14.201
Mm-hmm.

01:09:14.268 --> 01:09:15.734
We've never had an empty seat.

01:09:15.834 --> 01:09:17.435
And we certainly
won't in Oklahoma.

01:09:17.535 --> 01:09:19.335
TikTok users may well be

01:09:19.468 --> 01:09:21.869
President Trump's
latest adversary,

01:09:21.969 --> 01:09:24.868
after thousands of people
who've gotten tickets online

01:09:24.968 --> 01:09:25.968
didn't show up,

01:09:26.101 --> 01:09:28.868
thanks to a secret campaign
on TikTok.

01:09:28.968 --> 01:09:32.601
We've gotten over
a million tickets sold

01:09:32.734 --> 01:09:34.602
and only 6,000 people showed up.

01:09:34.735 --> 01:09:37.534
President Trump was frustrated
and angry.

01:09:42.702 --> 01:09:46.368
GIRL: Tiktok is definitely
giving teenagers new power.

01:09:46.435 --> 01:09:50.235
I think it's unbelievable
that I was able to prank

01:09:50.335 --> 01:09:51.869
an American President.

01:09:51.969 --> 01:09:53.602
NEWSCASTER: Trump nemesis,
New York Congresswoman

01:09:53.702 --> 01:09:56.067
Alexandria Ocasio Cortez,
gloated.

01:10:00.602 --> 01:10:02.735
As soon as that rally happened,

01:10:02.869 --> 01:10:06.767
that's when the rhetoric
on TikTok rose to a level

01:10:06.901 --> 01:10:08.468
that we hadn't seen before.

01:10:08.535 --> 01:10:11.035
The real China hawks
in his Administration

01:10:11.135 --> 01:10:13.568
were ready to go after this
company, and then were kind

01:10:13.668 --> 01:10:16.701
of waiting for the moment,
and this rally

01:10:16.801 --> 01:10:18.535
and the pandemic
came together

01:10:18.602 --> 01:10:20.134
to give them
that moment that they needed.

01:10:20.235 --> 01:10:23.134
The Pentagon,
the Department of State,

01:10:23.235 --> 01:10:24.702
the Department
of Homeland Security,

01:10:24.802 --> 01:10:27.968
and the TSA have all banned
their employees

01:10:28.068 --> 01:10:29.568
and service members

01:10:29.668 --> 01:10:32.001
from using TikTok
on government devices,

01:10:32.101 --> 01:10:34.301
and we know that it's
a national security risk.

01:10:34.435 --> 01:10:36.502
People really pounced
on this moment,

01:10:36.635 --> 01:10:39.034
not only the China-hawks
and the US government,

01:10:39.134 --> 01:10:43.235
but also the tech companies,
particularly Facebook.

01:10:43.335 --> 01:10:45.502
Do you believe
that the Chinese government

01:10:45.602 --> 01:10:48.568
steals technology
from US companies?

01:10:48.702 --> 01:10:50.869
Uh, Congressman,
I think it's well documented

01:10:50.935 --> 01:10:53.034
that the Chinese government
steals technology

01:10:53.134 --> 01:10:54.901
from American companies.

01:10:54.968 --> 01:10:57.535
And so Mark Zuckerberg
saw this as a moment

01:10:57.635 --> 01:10:59.401
and Facebook pounced
on this moment,

01:10:59.502 --> 01:11:02.001
where TikTok was getting
under pressure,

01:11:02.068 --> 01:11:04.435
and he said, "I'm gonna
turn this up even more."

01:11:04.535 --> 01:11:06.835
And so they started
making their case

01:11:06.902 --> 01:11:08.702
to the different people
in Congress

01:11:08.802 --> 01:11:10.835
who were really
going after Facebook,

01:11:10.902 --> 01:11:12.535
and they were saying,
"You know what?

01:11:12.635 --> 01:11:14.567
"You're looking at us
as the Boogeyman,

01:11:14.701 --> 01:11:16.601
"but we're just a distraction,

01:11:16.701 --> 01:11:17.901
"from the real problem,

01:11:18.001 --> 01:11:19.568
"which are the Chinese
tech companies,

01:11:19.668 --> 01:11:20.901
"and those are the companies

01:11:20.968 --> 01:11:22.702
that you should be
looking at."

01:11:22.802 --> 01:11:24.568
Now the "Wall Street Journal"
is reporting that...

01:11:24.668 --> 01:11:27.868
Not only did
Mark Zuckerberg publicly

01:11:27.968 --> 01:11:29.435
go against TikTok,

01:11:29.568 --> 01:11:33.368
he lobbied behind the scenes
against the company,

01:11:33.435 --> 01:11:35.635
in a private dinner
with the President.

01:11:35.735 --> 01:11:37.501
There was a moment
during the pandemic

01:11:37.634 --> 01:11:39.401
where cases were going up,

01:11:39.502 --> 01:11:41.034
we didn't have a vaccine,

01:11:41.134 --> 01:11:43.835
Donald Trump's campaign
wasn't doing so well,

01:11:43.902 --> 01:11:47.869
and so Donald Trump started
really hammering this idea home

01:11:47.969 --> 01:11:51.467
that we need to blame China
for the Coronavirus,

01:11:51.534 --> 01:11:52.868
and this pandemic.

01:11:52.934 --> 01:11:54.868
"Kung-flu."

01:11:54.934 --> 01:11:56.468
The Chinese virus.

01:11:56.535 --> 01:11:57.902
REPORTER: Why do you keep
using this?

01:11:57.969 --> 01:11:59.634
- Because it comes from China.
- Sounds racist.

01:11:59.734 --> 01:12:01.301
It's not racist at all.
No.

01:12:01.401 --> 01:12:04.035
Not at all.
It comes from China.

01:12:04.135 --> 01:12:06.201
SHELLY: Trump loved that.
He wanted to play to that,

01:12:06.301 --> 01:12:10.001
because it became this kind
of rallying cry in the US

01:12:10.101 --> 01:12:11.869
to go after China,

01:12:11.969 --> 01:12:16.434
and TikTok kind of became, um,
this symbol of China

01:12:16.501 --> 01:12:18.102
at that moment.

01:12:18.202 --> 01:12:20.535
NEWSCASTER: There have been
more than 2,500 incidents

01:12:20.635 --> 01:12:22.934
of anti-Asian hate crimes.

01:12:23.034 --> 01:12:24.768
NEWSCASTER: It's not just
in the US,

01:12:24.869 --> 01:12:28.201
Asians around the world
have reported discrimination

01:12:28.335 --> 01:12:29.968
linked to Coronavirus.

01:12:30.068 --> 01:12:32.235
Asian hate, it didn't
just started now.

01:12:32.368 --> 01:12:34.235
It was always there.

01:12:34.368 --> 01:12:35.567
It was
always there.

01:12:58.834 --> 01:13:00.934
Suddenly,
because of the pandemic,

01:13:01.034 --> 01:13:05.368
TikTok became this symbol
of this fight

01:13:05.435 --> 01:13:08.368
between the US and China,
and a way for Donald Trump

01:13:08.468 --> 01:13:10.168
to kind of deflect blame.

01:13:10.268 --> 01:13:12.001
NEWSCASTER: It all started
last Friday,

01:13:12.101 --> 01:13:14.002
when President Trump
send shockwaves

01:13:14.069 --> 01:13:16.601
through social media
after making this comment.

01:13:16.701 --> 01:13:17.834
We're looking at TikTok.

01:13:17.934 --> 01:13:19.635
We may be banning TikTok.

01:13:19.702 --> 01:13:20.634
NEWSCASTER: The President
threatened to block

01:13:20.734 --> 01:13:21.934
the popular video app,

01:13:22.068 --> 01:13:24.101
citing national
security concerns.

01:13:24.201 --> 01:13:26.968
No. We're--we're not
a national security threat.

01:13:27.101 --> 01:13:28.968
And we've said that time
and again,

01:13:29.101 --> 01:13:31.901
we have very strict
data access and controls.

01:13:31.968 --> 01:13:33.535
NEWSCASTER: TikTok has said,

01:13:33.635 --> 01:13:34.767
"American user data is stored
in the US,

01:13:34.868 --> 01:13:36.235
"and backed up in Singapore,

01:13:36.335 --> 01:13:37.802
not in China."

01:13:37.902 --> 01:13:41.068
We are at a time when we're
seeing a very much...

01:13:41.168 --> 01:13:42.801
a geopolitical tension,
as you know,

01:13:42.901 --> 01:13:44.602
between the US and China,

01:13:44.702 --> 01:13:45.968
and we are
in the middle of that.

01:13:46.034 --> 01:13:48.468
In China, there is
a cyber security law

01:13:48.602 --> 01:13:50.435
that states, "If we ask you
for information,

01:13:50.535 --> 01:13:51.801
then you have
to give it to us."

01:13:51.901 --> 01:13:53.869
NEWSCASTER:
The 2017 law mandates

01:13:53.969 --> 01:13:55.801
that Chinese-owned companies
have to cooperate

01:13:55.868 --> 01:13:57.268
with the Communist Party.

01:13:57.368 --> 01:13:59.268
And so that's kind
of the heart of the problem.

01:13:59.368 --> 01:14:02.400
TikTok can swear up and down
that they've never been asked

01:14:02.534 --> 01:14:03.968
to give information,

01:14:04.068 --> 01:14:05.468
but that doesn't stop
the Chinese government

01:14:05.568 --> 01:14:07.968
from taking information
in the future.

01:14:09.835 --> 01:14:12.235
I remember this moment,
where we had the pandemic,

01:14:12.335 --> 01:14:13.768
we had Black Lives Matter
protests,

01:14:13.835 --> 01:14:16.201
we have wildfires
in California,

01:14:16.301 --> 01:14:18.435
like the world feels
like it's falling apart

01:14:18.535 --> 01:14:21.335
and the only thing people
on the news are talking about

01:14:21.435 --> 01:14:23.268
is this ban of TikTok.

01:14:23.368 --> 01:14:26.101
Just the threat alone
has already had a huge impact.

01:14:26.201 --> 01:14:28.634
Advertisers have been
hitting pause on campaigns,

01:14:28.734 --> 01:14:30.034
worth millions of dollars...

01:14:30.101 --> 01:14:33.134
It caused absolute chaos
in the tech industry,

01:14:33.235 --> 01:14:34.702
like Apple and Google,

01:14:34.802 --> 01:14:36.101
and everyone
was sort of struggling

01:14:36.201 --> 01:14:38.368
to get a handle on it,
and thinking,

01:14:38.468 --> 01:14:40.734
"Can a president
even do this?"

01:14:40.834 --> 01:14:42.168
Yo, what's up, guys?

01:14:42.268 --> 01:14:44.601
I'm sure all you guys
heard the news.

01:14:44.701 --> 01:14:46.134
TikTok's getting banned.

01:14:46.201 --> 01:14:51.567
I'm... going across TikTok,
and all my friends

01:14:51.667 --> 01:14:54.001
are saying bye to TikTok

01:14:54.101 --> 01:14:56.168
"It's so sad I have
to leave you, guys."

01:14:56.235 --> 01:14:57.801
There's another one saying,
"Please follow me

01:14:57.901 --> 01:14:59.735
on all my other
social media."

01:14:59.835 --> 01:15:03.335
And I was fearing
for my career.

01:15:03.435 --> 01:15:04.835
♪ But it's done now

01:15:04.935 --> 01:15:06.901
I have five million followers.
How can this get banned?

01:15:06.968 --> 01:15:09.101
This is my living,
it's what I do.

01:15:09.201 --> 01:15:12.468
And I'm starting a video
petition with #savetiktok.

01:15:12.568 --> 01:15:14.601
You all mean the world to me.

01:15:14.701 --> 01:15:15.634
[sighs]

01:15:15.767 --> 01:15:17.268
Thank you for everything.

01:15:17.401 --> 01:15:19.168
Thank you for a career.

01:15:19.268 --> 01:15:22.734
Thank you for... making all
my beatbox dreams come true.

01:15:24.068 --> 01:15:25.502
That was tough.
I...

01:15:25.635 --> 01:15:28.201
I thought of a million
different possibilities in my...

01:15:28.268 --> 01:15:31.235
Maybe I gotta perform
or maybe I gotta go busk

01:15:31.301 --> 01:15:33.068
or something, like,
"What am I gonna do?"

01:15:33.168 --> 01:15:35.834
Like, it was definitely tough
for me to see,

01:15:35.934 --> 01:15:38.334
because I didn't want
that to happen.

01:15:38.434 --> 01:15:39.702
TikTok.

01:15:39.802 --> 01:15:41.201
A few days after
the executive order,

01:15:41.301 --> 01:15:44.935
we hear that Microsoft
is in deal talks to buy TikTok.

01:15:45.035 --> 01:15:47.801
Then we started hearing,
"Okay, well, maybe Oracle

01:15:47.934 --> 01:15:49.301
"wants to buy TikTok,

01:15:49.401 --> 01:15:51.002
"maybe all these
other companies, you know,

01:15:51.135 --> 01:15:53.435
"because if they bought TikTok
then it would no longer

01:15:53.568 --> 01:15:55.634
be owned
by a Chinese company,"

01:15:55.767 --> 01:15:57.134
and suddenly
that would be okay

01:15:57.235 --> 01:15:59.001
for Donald Trump,
and, oh, by the way,

01:15:59.101 --> 01:16:01.368
Donald Trump also wanted
to take a finder's fee

01:16:01.468 --> 01:16:04.168
to get some money
to the Treasury,

01:16:04.301 --> 01:16:06.468
which is probably
the most bizarre part

01:16:06.568 --> 01:16:08.534
of the entire storyline.

01:16:10.335 --> 01:16:11.701
TikTok kept saying,
"We're trying to find a deal,

01:16:11.767 --> 01:16:13.168
we're trying
to find a deal,"

01:16:13.268 --> 01:16:17.735
but, in the meantime,
nothing was actually happening,

01:16:17.835 --> 01:16:19.802
and then the Chinese government
stepped in.

01:16:19.902 --> 01:16:23.468
Tonight, state media have been
lashing out, once again,

01:16:23.568 --> 01:16:26.767
saying that Beijing would,
quote, undoubtedly prepare

01:16:26.868 --> 01:16:28.768
proportional countermeasures

01:16:28.869 --> 01:16:32.201
for what it says could become
piracy and looting

01:16:32.301 --> 01:16:33.535
by the United States.

01:16:33.635 --> 01:16:37.201
All of a sudden, came this law
that banned the export

01:16:37.301 --> 01:16:39.734
or sale of any
artificial intelligence

01:16:39.868 --> 01:16:41.235
from China.

01:16:41.301 --> 01:16:43.335
ByteDance and TikTok
at its core

01:16:43.468 --> 01:16:45.168
is an AI company.

01:16:45.301 --> 01:16:47.301
And that was really
what stopped the discussion

01:16:47.401 --> 01:16:50.935
and could prevent
the sale of TikTok.

01:16:51.035 --> 01:16:54.502
TikTok is one of the opening
salvos in an emerging battle

01:16:54.568 --> 01:16:57.901
of technology between
the world's two largest

01:16:57.968 --> 01:17:00.501
and most dynamic economies.

01:17:00.634 --> 01:17:03.167
A new tech cold war.

01:17:07.102 --> 01:17:09.868
SHELLY: And then, the November
US Presidential Elections

01:17:09.968 --> 01:17:12.134
started heating up,
and the story of TikTok

01:17:12.235 --> 01:17:14.268
became the biggest deal
of the century

01:17:14.335 --> 01:17:16.401
that never actually
ended up happening,

01:17:16.502 --> 01:17:19.767
because Donald Trump
lost the Presidency,

01:17:19.868 --> 01:17:21.567
Biden took over

01:17:21.667 --> 01:17:23.502
and we never revisited it.

01:17:23.602 --> 01:17:26.068
Well, it turns out the clock
won't stop for TikTok.

01:17:26.168 --> 01:17:28.368
President Biden has signed
a new executive order,

01:17:28.468 --> 01:17:31.335
voiding the Trump-era decision
seeking to ban

01:17:31.401 --> 01:17:32.368
the social media app.

01:17:32.435 --> 01:17:34.068
Everybody, calm down.
Calm down.

01:17:34.201 --> 01:17:35.868
TikTok is not getting banned.

01:17:36.001 --> 01:17:38.702
I just love how Trump
tried to ban TikTok.

01:17:38.835 --> 01:17:41.868
And now TikTok
has banned Trump.

01:17:44.235 --> 01:17:48.101
TikTok is just one app
in what is going to be

01:17:48.201 --> 01:17:50.767
a long line of applications

01:17:50.901 --> 01:17:54.502
and new ways of communicating.

01:17:54.602 --> 01:17:57.702
And so acknowledging
our own humanity in this.

01:17:57.802 --> 01:18:01.268
On the internet, we treat
others like they're disposable,

01:18:01.401 --> 01:18:05.602
but, and you know,
nobody is disposable.

01:18:05.702 --> 01:18:08.101
Okay, mama, what do you think
of my haircut?

01:18:08.235 --> 01:18:10.001
- I love it.
- You love it?

01:18:10.101 --> 01:18:11.968
My mom's now been sober

01:18:12.068 --> 01:18:14.869
for a little more
than four years.

01:18:14.969 --> 01:18:17.435
And now we have
a really great relationship.

01:18:17.535 --> 01:18:19.702
I've actively worked...
to remind myself

01:18:19.802 --> 01:18:23.101
that she's someone
who's capable of change.

01:18:26.601 --> 01:18:28.001
As a digital native,

01:18:28.134 --> 01:18:32.001
it's exhausting to grow up
and make mistakes

01:18:32.101 --> 01:18:33.468
in front of everyone.

01:18:33.568 --> 01:18:35.335
And not just the people
who are looking at me right now,

01:18:35.401 --> 01:18:38.434
but inevitably, the people who
are looking at me in five years,

01:18:38.534 --> 01:18:39.668
ten years...

01:18:39.802 --> 01:18:42.767
The things you put
on the internet are forever.

01:18:42.834 --> 01:18:44.801
But...
Hey! How's it going?

01:18:44.868 --> 01:18:46.901
I founded GenZ Girl Gang

01:18:47.034 --> 01:18:48.834
because social media
can be used

01:18:48.934 --> 01:18:50.934
as a community building tool.

01:18:51.068 --> 01:18:53.535
As my generation gets older,

01:18:53.668 --> 01:18:56.101
and we live
more life documented,

01:18:56.201 --> 01:19:00.068
I hope that--that we
learn to live

01:19:00.168 --> 01:19:02.068
with this technology,

01:19:02.168 --> 01:19:04.467
and really live
with it, right?

01:19:04.601 --> 01:19:06.235
Live full lives with it.

01:19:06.335 --> 01:19:09.168
Live our mistakes through it.

01:19:09.268 --> 01:19:11.834
That we can all create the space
for one another

01:19:11.934 --> 01:19:14.167
to--to change.

01:19:18.667 --> 01:19:21.635
[beatboxing]

01:19:21.735 --> 01:19:24.668
SPENCER: The way that old
Hollywood was

01:19:24.735 --> 01:19:30.102
is very different
than how new Hollywood is.

01:19:30.202 --> 01:19:33.534
TikTok's so, so young that
everything that's happening

01:19:33.634 --> 01:19:34.934
is so fresh right now.

01:19:35.034 --> 01:19:37.400
We're really gonna see
who shines.

01:19:37.534 --> 01:19:39.968
[beatboxing]

01:19:40.068 --> 01:19:41.335
I have a lot of followers.

01:19:41.435 --> 01:19:43.934
Like, right now,
I have 54 million,

01:19:44.034 --> 01:19:45.300
as of yesterday.

01:19:49.301 --> 01:19:52.534
We follow you! Can you take
a picture with my kids?

01:19:52.634 --> 01:19:53.734
Oh, my God!

01:19:53.834 --> 01:19:58.634
[all speak at once]

01:19:58.701 --> 01:20:00.068
Don't cry.

01:20:00.168 --> 01:20:01.368
I'm happy.

01:20:01.468 --> 01:20:03.634
- I know. We're happy too.
- Aw.

01:20:03.734 --> 01:20:04.667
No...

01:20:04.767 --> 01:20:06.001
You're gonna make me cry.

01:20:06.101 --> 01:20:07.868
Let me take a picture
really quick.

01:20:07.968 --> 01:20:10.667
[beatboxing]

01:20:10.734 --> 01:20:12.535
My boy!
'Pérate!

01:20:12.635 --> 01:20:14.134
You guys have a great day,
all right?

01:20:14.235 --> 01:20:15.735
Thank you!
That was awesome.

01:20:15.835 --> 01:20:20.134
To me, I think, fame is
that support you give people

01:20:20.235 --> 01:20:24.734
that didn't really have it
before you existed.

01:20:24.801 --> 01:20:26.767
- I follow you.
- Aw.

01:20:26.834 --> 01:20:27.767
I will follow you
guys back.

01:20:27.868 --> 01:20:29.034
I follow you on TikTok.

01:20:29.134 --> 01:20:31.401
I just put out
a music video, like--

01:20:31.468 --> 01:20:33.834
- Uh-huh, I found it.
- You did? Aw, thank you.

01:20:35.702 --> 01:20:39.868
I want kids to be like,
"I know I can do that too.

01:20:39.968 --> 01:20:43.168
I know there's
a chance out there."

01:20:43.268 --> 01:20:45.934
I would've never dreamed,
in a million years,

01:20:46.034 --> 01:20:48.902
it would happen like this.

01:20:49.002 --> 01:20:51.601
TikTok has really changed
my entire life.

01:20:55.335 --> 01:20:57.401
And I--I think
if I wanna speak

01:20:57.535 --> 01:21:00.134
to anyone out there
that ever has a dream

01:21:00.201 --> 01:21:04.268
and think that it's too crazy...

01:21:04.368 --> 01:21:07.535
too crazy to accomplish, uh,
you can do it.

01:21:07.668 --> 01:21:09.467
You can--you can do anything
that you want.

01:21:09.567 --> 01:21:12.501
Sorry.

01:21:14.602 --> 01:21:16.902
It's--it's so, it's so weird
for me, 'cause, like, being

01:21:17.002 --> 01:21:22.034
a beatboxer... it was so hard
for me to be accepted.

01:21:22.134 --> 01:21:25.400
And... [sniffles]

01:21:25.501 --> 01:21:29.234
[exhales]

01:21:32.134 --> 01:21:35.300
I'm just really, really glad
I never gave up.

01:21:39.968 --> 01:21:42.101
FAREZA:
It's graduation day.

01:21:42.235 --> 01:21:44.034
I'm definitely nervous,

01:21:44.134 --> 01:21:46.901
I'm trying to wear
my Afghan sash

01:21:47.001 --> 01:21:48.835
to graduation.

01:21:48.902 --> 01:21:50.635
I was told
that I can't wear the sash

01:21:50.702 --> 01:21:55.802
because it goes
against dress code.

01:21:55.902 --> 01:21:59.635
But I'm sure that no matter
what people say about me,

01:21:59.735 --> 01:22:02.368
at the end of the day
I'm proud and Afghan

01:22:02.468 --> 01:22:04.334
and there's no other
human being like me.

01:22:06.435 --> 01:22:08.001
Take a lot.
Just tap a lot.

01:22:08.101 --> 01:22:09.601
And if it glitches,
use your phone.

01:22:11.702 --> 01:22:14.502
It feels a little embarrassing
to see, like, my mom

01:22:14.602 --> 01:22:17.268
and the whole family, like,
celebrating me graduating,

01:22:17.368 --> 01:22:20.401
'cause I'm like, "Ugh, it's
not that big of a deal."

01:22:20.502 --> 01:22:22.268
But then I look back at them,
and I'm like...

01:22:22.335 --> 01:22:25.034
Honestly, it is, 'cause
I'm the first female

01:22:25.134 --> 01:22:27.802
in my family
to graduate high school.

01:22:27.935 --> 01:22:30.735
My mother, she went
to elementary school,

01:22:30.835 --> 01:22:34.401
but then, once the violence
in Kabul, Afghanistan,

01:22:34.502 --> 01:22:37.668
got too much, she had to be
taken out at third grade.

01:22:37.802 --> 01:22:39.901
I'm the first anyone
in my family

01:22:40.001 --> 01:22:42.033
to even go to college now.

01:22:53.201 --> 01:22:54.834
[cheering and applause]

01:22:54.901 --> 01:22:56.834
MAN: Welcome to graduation.

01:22:56.934 --> 01:23:00.400
We're the class of 2021.

01:23:02.602 --> 01:23:05.834
I didn't expect myself
to go viral

01:23:05.934 --> 01:23:09.168
and be this activist.

01:23:09.235 --> 01:23:13.868
What inspired me to speak up
was seeing those around me

01:23:13.968 --> 01:23:15.101
staying silent.

01:23:18.468 --> 01:23:20.235
WOMAN: Feroza Aziz.

01:23:20.301 --> 01:23:22.435
[cheering and applause]

01:23:22.502 --> 01:23:26.802
I wanna do more in the future
on human rights issues,

01:23:26.902 --> 01:23:30.068
and I wanna do more than just
speaking on social media.

01:23:30.168 --> 01:23:31.801
I actually wanna
physically help.

01:23:34.235 --> 01:23:35.134
MAN: Congratulations.

01:23:35.235 --> 01:23:39.367
[cheering and whistling]

01:23:40.468 --> 01:23:41.801
[speaks in foreign language]

01:23:41.901 --> 01:23:43.400
Thank you.

01:23:52.935 --> 01:23:55.802
TAYLOR: TikTok has infiltrated
American culture,

01:23:55.902 --> 01:23:57.668
the Hollywood
and entertainment system,

01:23:57.768 --> 01:24:00.735
and--and politics, and all
of these different facets

01:24:00.869 --> 01:24:04.435
of American life
in--in such a deep way.

01:24:04.568 --> 01:24:06.535
There's very legitimate reasons
to think critically

01:24:06.635 --> 01:24:09.602
about the impact that this
massive tech conglomerate

01:24:09.702 --> 01:24:12.802
is having on America
and it's really important

01:24:12.902 --> 01:24:14.635
to think about issues
around data privacy

01:24:14.735 --> 01:24:16.568
with all of these
tech platforms.

01:24:16.635 --> 01:24:18.201
It's called
the Log Off movement,

01:24:18.301 --> 01:24:19.701
and it's a nonprofit
organization.

01:24:19.834 --> 01:24:21.301
It's really been started
by kids,

01:24:21.435 --> 01:24:23.801
for ways to promote
healthy ways to exist

01:24:23.868 --> 01:24:25.368
on social media.

01:24:25.468 --> 01:24:27.368
I'm really inspired
by the Log Off movement,

01:24:27.468 --> 01:24:30.534
they're a group
of high school students

01:24:30.667 --> 01:24:32.134
from all over the planet.

01:24:32.235 --> 01:24:33.468
They're not
just telling people

01:24:33.535 --> 01:24:35.668
to spend less time
on the apps.

01:24:35.735 --> 01:24:39.034
They're pushing back by talking
to members of Congress,

01:24:39.134 --> 01:24:42.235
by talking to people
at the platforms themselves,

01:24:42.335 --> 01:24:44.834
to try to change how
these systems are built.

01:24:44.968 --> 01:24:47.734
Companies like TikTok
need to be watched,

01:24:47.834 --> 01:24:49.435
they need
to be held accountable

01:24:49.568 --> 01:24:51.335
the same way that we hold

01:24:51.401 --> 01:24:53.467
other institutions
of power accountable.

01:24:54.668 --> 01:24:56.034
NEWSCASTER:
TikTok has tightened

01:24:56.134 --> 01:24:57.435
privacy measures.

01:24:57.535 --> 01:24:59.834
Anybody under 15
will automatically have

01:24:59.934 --> 01:25:01.335
a private account.

01:25:01.435 --> 01:25:03.802
Federal regulators
have already ordered the app

01:25:03.902 --> 01:25:08.135
to disclose how its practices
do effect young people.

01:25:08.236 --> 01:25:11.168
SHELLY: Personally, I don't
think it's fair to single out

01:25:11.268 --> 01:25:14.802
an individual company
just because it's popular.

01:25:14.902 --> 01:25:17.268
Personally, I think it makes
more sense to pass

01:25:17.368 --> 01:25:19.968
cohesive laws against
all companies,

01:25:20.068 --> 01:25:22.435
so that not only can TikTok
not do some of this,

01:25:22.535 --> 01:25:24.768
so neither can Facebook
or Google, or Amazon

01:25:24.835 --> 01:25:28.001
or any other companies,
regardless of nationality.

01:25:28.101 --> 01:25:29.902
[beatboxing]

01:25:30.035 --> 01:25:33.034
If the story ended today,
I would say, hands down,

01:25:33.101 --> 01:25:34.667
TikTok won.

01:25:36.869 --> 01:25:39.668
All the Trump ban did
was make TikTok even bigger,

01:25:39.768 --> 01:25:41.767
because it caused people
to download the app,

01:25:41.901 --> 01:25:43.368
it caused people
to talk about it,

01:25:43.502 --> 01:25:45.301
and so all it did
was create more growth

01:25:45.368 --> 01:25:47.535
and more revenue
for this Chinese company

01:25:47.635 --> 01:25:50.201
that is even bigger in the US
than it was

01:25:50.335 --> 01:25:51.968
when Trump first started
going after it.

01:25:53.568 --> 01:25:56.235
Now, the story's not over.

01:25:56.368 --> 01:25:57.535
[beatboxing]

01:25:57.602 --> 01:26:00.568
♪ Everybody wants
to be somebody ♪

01:26:00.635 --> 01:26:04.235
♪ Everybody wants
to be somebody ♪

01:26:04.335 --> 01:26:07.268
♪ Everybody...
wants to be somebody ♪

01:26:07.368 --> 01:26:09.367
[beatboxing]

01:26:09.501 --> 01:26:10.934
♪ Everybody

01:26:12.868 --> 01:26:14.868
♪ Be somebody

01:26:16.001 --> 01:26:19.734
♪ Everybody

01:26:19.834 --> 01:26:21.968
♪ Be somebody

01:26:35.568 --> 01:26:38.034
♪ Everybody
wants to be somebody ♪

01:26:38.134 --> 01:26:41.968
♪ Everybody wants
to be somebody ♪

01:26:42.068 --> 01:26:46.268
♪ Everybody
wants to be somebody ♪

01:26:46.368 --> 01:26:49.168
♪ Everybody wants
to be somebody ♪

01:26:49.301 --> 01:26:53.367
[beatboxing]

01:26:58.002 --> 01:27:00.034
...generations before us
didn't have the same power

01:27:00.168 --> 01:27:02.334
as we do now,
and that's technology.

01:27:02.434 --> 01:27:03.401
You have power.

01:27:03.502 --> 01:27:04.901
You can create change.

01:27:05.034 --> 01:27:06.834
[beatboxing]

01:27:06.934 --> 01:27:09.834
[pop song playing]