Black comedian Ziggi Tyler called out TikTok over discrepancies in how the platform flags inappropriate content. In a viral TikTok video, Tyler demonstrated how TikTok allows bios to include words like "neo-Nazi," "pro-White," and "White supremacist" but bans terms such as "pro-Black," "Black Lives Matter," "Black success," and "Black people."
"If I go into the Creator Marketplace and I put supporting white supremacy and I hit accept, it's okay and it lets me have my ads and revenue," Tyler said. "But God forbid, let me put 'Black Lives Matters' on there -- watch, it's a threat. Boom, innapropiate content. Can't say that. I cannot say 'Black people,' this is my screen recording and this is why I'm pissed the f*** off, we're tired, we're tired. Okay, 'Black success.' Boom, inappropriate content. Anything Black related is inappropriate content. 'Black,' can't say it, but let's take that out of the equation. 'White success,' the same thing, it's allowed. 'Pro white,' 'white voices,' it's accepted, $500."
After Tyler's viral video caused the social media platform to face backlash from its users, a TikTok spokesperson released a statement attributing the discrepancy to a fault in the company's algorithm.
"Our TikTok Creator Marketplace protections, which flag phrases typically associated with hate speech, were erroneously set to flag phrases without respect to word order," the statement read. "We recognize and apologize for how frustrating this was to experience, and our team has fixed this significant error. To be clear, Black Lives Matter does not violate our policies and currently has over 27 billion views on our platform."
Since TikTok's statement, Tyler claims 'Black' phrases are still being flagged and that the ability for him to stitch or duet his content has been disabled. Tyler's issue with TikTok comes amid Black TikTok users going on "strike" due to White content creators profiting off of their original posts.
Source: Forbes
