Why I Don’t Have TikTok

As crazy as it sounds, I do not have TikTok. While I am saying crazy things, I do not have an interest in downloading TikTok. I have silently watched it become a national trend, causing a domino effect not just in the US, but around the world.

While I do recognize that there are several interesting videos on TikTok, like sixty second recipes or a dog jumping on his hind legs across NYC, it seems to me like the majority of TikTok is simply videos of strangers dancing to songs that were made popular solely on TikTok. For me, it is exactly the same as Dance Dance Revolution, where you try to copy someone else’s dance moves to an unfamiliar song, and then share with the world.

It seems as though TikTok has caused more harm than good, at least recently. In February of 2019, TikTok was forced to pay a large sum of money in fines for collecting personal information from children under the age of 13. Additionally, on a less legal level, TikTok has encouraged many to participate in challenges that are incredibly dangerous. These include the skullbreaker challenge, which involves tripping someone so that they fall backwards and land on their head, and the penny challenge, which involves putting a penny between a phone charger and a wall outlet. The skullbreaker challenge has caused many serious injuries that have resulted in hospitalization, and the penny challenge has caused many fires worldwide.

Finally, TikTok has added to the lethal army of social media networks that have forced our generation to be so attached to our phones. No longer do we take in the sights of our world, but instead we take pictures in an attempt to take in the followers of the world. Every passing moment in our lives has transformed into a constant search as to where our next post will come from. In my opinion, TikTok is just another platform that encourages people to grow more attached to their phones and less attached to reality.