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TikTok is testing a content rating system that will restrict age-inappropriate content from appearing in the video feeds of younger users.
TikTok is working on a content rating system — somewhat similar to the G, PG, PG-13, R or NC-17 rating system — to keep suggestive or mature content from reaching young users. TikTok has lately drawn a lot of heat over the kind of content that its younger users are exposed to, with the scope of problematic content including everything from ‘thirst traps’ to violence and health-related misinformation.
In fact, the company recently received a warning from the US government over its role in the online sale of drugs that have contributed to multiple overdose-related casualties. In the UK, lawmakers have again floated plans of using age verification to curb the content woes. In a hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee in October last year, TikTok revealed that it is working on systems that will dish out content based on “age appropriateness or family comfort.”
TikTok has now outlined a broad range of changes that aim to protect its community, especially users that are at risk of exposure to unhealthy content or online abuse. TikTok is also working on a film-like content rating system that’s currently being tested internally, according to Protocol. The content rating won’t appear tagged alongside the actual video, and will instead be used internally to categorize videos before they are pushed to the feed. “Overtly mature” videos that are deemed fit for an adult audience will be restricted from appearing in the timeline of users that fall in a vulnerable age group. In July last year, TikTok automated the process of removing videos that violated its content policies, with the system trained to look specifically for objectionable elements such as sexual activity, violent, or graphic content that could be especially harmful or traumatizing to TikTok’s younger audience.
Right Move, Tricky Execution
According to TechCrunch, users will be able to specify the levels of content maturity or “comfort zones” that they want to see in the app. For younger users, parents and guardians will be making that decision on their behalf using the Family Pairing parental control feature. Instagram has already put a system in place that allows users to specify the level of sensitivity when it comes to media that’s pushed to their feed by the content algorithm.
The short-video sharing platform also has a user-facing system in the pipeline that will allow content creators to specify whether a video should be restricted to a mature audience or is suitable for younger users as well. However, the move could result in other issues. YouTube has already courted controversy in relation to the suppression of videos that were wrongfully deemed inappropriate by its systems. This has particularly been an issue for videos with LGBTQ+ themes, or those representing elements that are alien or deemed inappropriate by western cultural standards but fine elsewhere. TikTok’s content rating system is currently being tested in a very small circle of users, and there is no word on when it will be widely implemented.
Sources: TikTok, Protocol, TechCrunch
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