Local students, community members value TikTok's entertainment, information service

Apr. 10—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — As the controversy grows regarding social media platform TikTok, local students say they wouldn't be devastated by a ban of the app, although they don't think the action would be fair.

Three Bishop McCort Catholic High School students said they primarily use the app for entertainment purposes, but noted that the video service acts as a key informational source for them as well.

"When people hear TikTok, they think it's just a form of entertainment so you can waste your time — but you can learn so much from creators," senior Megan Le said.

Classmate Chase Gleason said he uses TikTok to track current events, adding that he learned of the recent Nashville, Tennessee, school shooting on the app, and has stayed up to date with the ongoing war in Ukraine through that platform.

However, the senior also uses the app as a way to decompress from the day.

"I like that I can get on it and watch videos for 10 or 15 minutes when I need a break from homework or chores," Gleason said.

Fellow senior Nick Yost agreed.

"I mainly just watch it for entertainment," he said. "I know some of my friends make funny videos, and I watch them."

Yost said he uses TikTok for educational purposes as well. He enjoys fishing and hunting and follows accounts that can teach him more about his hobbies.

Watching that kind of content makes him want to get out and try the techniques or test the information he's been introduced to.

'Stuff will be gone'

Despite its usefulness, TikTok faces a possible ban by the U.S. Congress. Some states have already outlawed the app on government cellphones.

If the video service is banned, all three students say the news wouldn't be too upsetting — they'd revert to some other social media network, such as Instagram.

But, they also pointed out the issues with such a move.

"If you're going to outlaw one thing that's similar to another, eventually they're going to find a problem with Instagram," Yost said. "They'll eventually find a problem with Instagram and Snapchat and all that stuff will be gone."

Gleason said that wouldn't be fair to the people who've worked hard to create these apps.

Le noted a ban would be detrimental to all the creators on TikTok who have launched successful careers using that platform, erasing all their hard work.

TikTok, similar to other social media, pays creators based on views of their work, which became a popular revenue source for some during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Local groups that utilize the app range from the Johnstown Mill Rats prospect league baseball team and the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown to the Westmont Hilltop High School theater group.

Johnstown native Cat Janisko has also made a name for herself on the app as @PennsylvaniaJunkie, where she shares state-centered content.

China ties debated

In late March, members of Congress held a hearing where they grilled TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew for hours about the app's policies, data collection, reach and affiliations.

Questions ranged from whether the app connects to a user's home WiFi network — it does if the cellphone's WiFi is on — tracks pupil dilation to measure interest in a video — the app does not — how the algorithm works and what measures are taken to protect teens from the dangers of social media.

Chew responded to each inquiry by detailing the company's work.

"While the vast majority of people on TikTok are over 18, one of our fastest growing demographics are people over 35," he said, according to a Tech Policy Press transcript. "We spent a lot of time adopting measures to protect teenagers. Many of those measures are firsts for the social media industry. ... There are more than 150 million Americans who love our platform and we know we have a responsibility to protect them."

Chew said the company is committed to keeping teenagers safe, continuing to build a firewall to protect U.S. data from unwanted foreign access, that the platform will "remain a place for free expression and will not be manipulated by any government" and be transparent by giving access to third-party independent monitors to remain accountable.

During his testimony, Chew also attempted to counter perceptions that the Chinese government is involved with the app or its parent company ByteDance.

He said TikTok is not available in mainland China and noted that the ByteDance's five-member board includes three U.S. residents.

In a statement afterward, U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Washington, said: "TikTok's extensive digital surveillance and influence operations, coupled with its irreparable ties to the Chinese Communist Party, warrant immediate action by the U.S. government to protect America's national security. Under Chinese law, TikTok's parent company is required to give the CCP full access to the app's data, including digital dossiers containing the sensitive personal information of its 150 million American users — essentially turning the social media platform into Chinese spyware."

To date, there has been no proof provided that the Chinese government is tied to TikTok or that the CCP has requested information from the programmers.

Chew said as much during the congressional hearing, adding that the company, which is based in Los Angeles, California, and Singapore, is working to move all servers to the U.S.

"Let me state this unequivocally: ByteDance is not an agent of China or any other country," Chew said.

He also stated that TikTok doesn't sell its data to brokers and does not collect precise GPS data, any health data or information about a body, face or voice to identify users.

The only data collected, according to Chew, is for use with filters that's "stored on your local device and deleted after use."

Still, Reschenthaler finished his statement by saying, "It's time to ban TikTok and end its operations in America. The clock is ticking on TikTok."

Local reach grows

Jacob Moore operates multiple local businesses — the Glow Rollar, formally CJ's Surf and Turf, and Moore's Auto Detailing — and he uses TikTok as his main source of information-sharing, a strategy that he said has paid off significantly.

The entrepreneur has nearly 13,000 followers on the social media platform with his handle @buildingabetterjohnstown — a figure that outpaces his Facebook and Instagram accounts by thousands.

"It grows every other day," Moore said.

His account dates to last October with about 60 videos posted and not all of his content is business-based.

Moore uses his platform to promote other local companies, including The Johnstown Galleria, and organize community clean-up events.

He said TikTok became a key way to connect with the 35-and-younger crowd, whereas other sites, such as Facebook, reach an older demographic.

What Moore appreciates most about the app is how easy it is to use and how quickly he can get information out to his followers.

All that progress and reach could be in danger, though, if Congress decides to ban the app in the coming months.

If that were to happen, Moore said it would create a "huge dent" in his operations because he wouldn't be able to get the word out as efficiently and have to resort to other means of communication.

Similar to the students, Moore noted that he would simply revert back to Facebook and Instagram, but that would be difficult to do because of the demographic shift.

What he doesn't understand about the possible congressional ban is why an older generation is trying to create policy about a platform they don't typically use — or perhaps understand, referencing some of the oddball questions asked.

Moore questioned why there's so much focus on TikTok as well when much of the social media industry exhibits the problems pointed out by elected officials.

In the past several years, other social media companies have received national attention for negative business practices.

An internal report from Instagram's parent company Meta, revealed the company was well aware of the negative effects the app can have on teenagers regarding their bodies and mental health.

Facebook has also been criticized for its massive data leaks and role of misinformation sharing during recent presidential elections and Twitter hasn't escaped public scrutiny because of ties to the federal government related to banning accounts and posts, and misinformation sharing.

One possible reason for the focus on TikTok may be Meta's payment to consulting firms, including Targeted Victory, to "boost messages calling TikTok a threat to American children."

According to the March 2022 Washington Post story "Facebook Paid GOP Firm to Malign TikTok," a nationwide media and lobbying campaign portraying the rival company as a danger to society and promoted "dubious stories about alleged TikTok trends that actually originated on Facebook" and pushed "to draw political reporters and local politicians into helping take down" the competitor.

This information was confirmed by internal emails shared with The Post.

"Campaign operatives were also encouraged to use TikTok's prominence as a way to deflect from Meta's own privacy and antitrust concerns," the story said.