Collective TikTok Reflections.
This post is a series of brief reflections on twenty minutes of FYP (For You Page) engagement from different members of our project.
We invite comments and submissions of your own from this prompt:
Take ten to twenty minutes to watch videos from your For You Page. When you have finished, take roughly ten minutes to reflect upon your experience.
This could take the form of a drawing, written text, or perhaps a poem. Any format is encouraged
Additionally, there is a short montage depicting a collection of For You Pages, which could also be considered for use as a material for the prompt above, should you not have a TikTok account.
This visual representation of FYPs may serve as insight into the different experiences of using TikTok, whilst potential revealing the different ‘digital twins’ produced through ‘The Algorithm’.
Harry:
This is a reflection on watching my FYP (for you page) for 15 minutes.
The thing I felt most was boredom! This is quite unusual, but I feel as though having a break from TikTok has led to the algorithm refiguring my tastes again. [Perhaps as a means to ‘recapture’ me]. I had an absolutely vast amount of videos highlighting American vs British differences. I’m really not sure why, but today it felt like somebody else’s algorithm and I did not find it enjoyable at all.
There was also a large focus on teachers, and also English teachers in the U.S. Maybe the algorithm way just trying something out, but it did not land. The #postiesoftiktok tag provided something possibly interesting in documenting the experiences of Royal Mail Employees. Through noting down what each video was about I am once again shocked at the diversity of topics, and also shocked at myself for not finding any really engaging. Perhaps it is this overwhelming diversity of topics which means none were really impactful in the context of each other.
It feels pretty funny that in taking the time for this exercise I had one of the most mundane and boring TikTok interactions ever. I think the thoughts of ‘breaking up with my algorithm’ are definitely coming through for me, as I have been pigeonholed in this space obsessed with British American relations, construction, teachers, and Covid.
Then again, that cat rapper video was pretty good…
James:
there is a morning fog in the Tik-Tok mirror
I can hardly see myself
parametrization predictions pass by
binary blood doesn’t quite reach my heart
glance
glance
shadow dance
feed the feed for mimesis
traced archetypes
rote learning
my digital twin is fraternal
-user1671362066204
Yathu:
Below is an excerpt from an exercise of watching my TikTok video live on zoom with 8 other people. We watched my feed for 5 minutes, and then wrote about any thoughts we had 5 minutes after.
I suddenly became aware of every video. It felt like every video contained a remnant of my personality, and identity. Even though that is not how the algorithm works. It gives you video every now and again that it does not know if you would like; it tests your boundaries.
It was weird to see so many ‘business guru’ kind of videos I get and watch. I get that. That is totally me, I enjoy thinking through these business ideas, and ideas of value present in them.
The Dogecoin video was the funniest by far. ‘Get rid of the ‘Fa’. Hilarious. TikTok at its best when it knows me. Also didn’t realise how I get so many sports videos. That makes sense.
Emily:
· Zodiac Sign related videos.
· Mature content POV’s.
· The odd dog video and or comedy skit.
· BookTok content.
I decided to browse my ‘for you’ page instead of WitchTok for this exercise. I still received a few #witch, #witchtok videos. Majority of my ‘for you’ page however was filled with some incredibly dark and gloomy content. I watched a lot of Zodiac videos that were assigning things such as mental health issues, monsters, toxic traits and so on, to specific signs. Giving an aura of negative around my feed. Almost as though my algorithm perceives me as being someone interested in dark content. Another video that disturbed me was a POV, it was focusing on pregnancy, rather disturbingly an unwanted one and what ‘you’ would do. I hope not to see more like that.
What really upset me was that I felt like I was being shared these negative videos because my interest in the Witch community that uses TikTok, I felt as if the app was imposing this negative connotation against the word. I find myself wondering if the word witch will forever has this overbearing shadow that follows it, even into the age of technology.
Despite all the dark content my TikTok gives me I still feel as though it is trying to bait me away from these darker corners. Luring me with bright colours and cute animals or attractive people. Fishing me away from the #witch and #witchtok.
Doodles are related to some imagery I saw during my scrolling.