As expected, TikTok did not shut down in the U.S. It was only offline for a few hours. There are many theories about this turnaround, but the main reason for avoiding the blackout was not the commercial impact (the app is used by more than 170 million Americans), as some experts argue. It was actually the app’s recommendation system that determined the reversal.
Grabbing attention, holding attention, and gaining the audience’s total trust—this is the strength of the Chinese tech company’s algorithm. No other social network has the same capability. Let’s look at the numbers: TikTok users worldwide spend, on average, one hour and eight minutes per day on the platform, just on Android devices. On YouTube, it’s 56 minutes; on Facebook, 39; on WhatsApp, 34; on Instagram, 32; and on X, only eight. Take note of the difference between the network bought by Elon Musk and the Chinese platform.
It is not, therefore, impossible to alter democratic thought if, daily, for an hour and eight minutes, we are convinced that climate change is a myth, that the people of Greenland want to become American citizens, that the U.S. leaving the WHO will not harm global disease surveillance, and so on.
We live in times when algorithms shape what we see, read, and believe. We live in times when misinformation spreads quickly, creating doubts and uncertainties—but also certainties. What started as a space for sharing knowledge and connecting with friends is now a space of power.
Moreover, Google is losing ground. For the first time in ten years, it has had less than 90% of search traffic, which means that content published on social networks and AI-powered search engines is gaining increasing relevance.
Now, there’s no point in political leaders shedding crocodile tears and putting the problem of algorithms on the agenda. They woke up too late and never implemented measures to at least, without being influenced by tech companies, promote serious and consistent digital literacy policies. They made attempts at laws, but as has been proven, they were useless.