Who designs the algorithm that resulted in the HRC having their account suspended on TikTok? Ready for the kicker: the comment that got them banned was one word, gay. Is the CEO of TikTok a Republican? Maybe they are golfing buddies with Ron DeSantis or Mike Pence.
Seriously @tiktok_us? You banned us for using the word gay in a comment. You need to do better! pic.twitter.com/3IZqXRAoKa
— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) April 11, 2022
According to The Advocate,
“HRC posted “GAY” with hearts in yellow and blue, the organization’s colors. The comment received 2000 likes before it was taken down and reported by other TikTok users, according to HRC. The group’s account was suspended on April 3 and the group was notified on April 4. HRC had initially been told that its account would be suspended until April 10, however, they were able to appeal.”
Wow. So just saying ‘gay’ gets you shut down. How disappointing that such a large platform would do something like that. 🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈
— Wianette Kaehne (@Wianette_Kaehne) April 11, 2022
Candidly, using the word “gay” is disturbing to a segment of @tiktoc_us demographic.
They’re implicitly choosing to align with that demographic, and its bigoted, intolerant constituency, rather than in the support of human rights and equal protection under the law.
— Andrew Nygard (@andrewnygard) April 11, 2022
Ty Cobb, senior director of strategic initiatives at HRC released a statement to The Advocate writing,
“What message does it send to young people when we comment or post LGBTQ+ content and it’s deemed inappropriate and a violation of community guidelines? We’re fighting a battle for our lives. Elected officials are trying to censor our speech and restrict our access to healthcare and equal opportunity. Our need to communicate to our community and allies is more important than ever right now. Having our TikTok account suspended for two days means our ability to post educational, affirming content was restricted, which is nothing short of devastating.”
You mean you said “gay” and they said “don’t say gay?”
— Christopher Wiggins (@CWNewser) April 11, 2022
TikTok did release a statement responding to the controversy and acknowledging the error,
“We restored the comment as soon as we were made aware of this error and will continue to provide ongoing training to help our moderators make consistent and accurate decisions. We are proud that LGBTQ+ community members choose to create and share on TikTok, and our policies seek to protect and empower these voices on our platform.”
D@tiktok_us banned us for using the word ‘GAY’ in a comment ? @HRC #TikTok #LGBTQ #HRC pic.twitter.com/QR25MF3Rph
— Barrister Barry🏳️🌈🤍🧜🏿♂️ (He/Him) (@BarristerBarry6) April 13, 2022
@tiktok_us is #homophobic for suspending @HRC the leafing #lgbt rights org for saying #gay https://t.co/CH5qT1amUt
— Darrell Wiggins (@darrellwatx) April 12, 2022
So was it a moderator who flagged the word and suspended HRC? And who are these people that reported the comment? I am sure the word straight has never been flagged on TikTok.
Sources: The Advocate
“I am sure the word straight has never been flagged on TikTok.”
Maybe it should be.