Children are the most exposed to TikTok!

According to current research, 36 percent of the population (30 million people) in Türkiye has a TikTok account. Emphasizing that children are the most exposed to the TikTok agenda in the digital age, experts say that children talk about these videos in the social environment they interact with, imitate the behaviors they see in their content and internalize them by turning them into an entertainment style.

Pointing out that the power of negative influence on social media spreads 6 times more than positive, Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal noted that precautions should be taken as soon as possible for TikTok videos, which spread like a virus, harm social integrity, family structure and values, and generally contain inappropriate content.

Üsküdar University Faculty of Communication Faculty Member Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal evaluated the impact of the TikTok application on children and the debate on whether it should be banned in Türkiye.

2 out of 3 people are aware of the TikTok agenda

Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal pointed out that according to current research, 36 percent of the population (30 million people) in Türkiye has a TikTok account and stated that "It is possible for a much larger audience to access short videos called TikTok reels, whether they have an account or not. We see TikTok images, which are circulated due to its integration with social media applications such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, any time. When we look around, we can see that 2 out of 3 people are aware of the TikTok agenda."

Children are most exposed

Emphasizing that children are the most exposed to the TikTok agenda in the digital age, Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal stated that "It is seen that children's selectivity in perception is now directed towards social media videos. Children tell about these videos in the social environment they interact with, imitate the behaviors they see in their content, and internalize them by turning them into entertainment. They take and apply the behaviors they see as a kind of norm, in other words, as part of the social structure. While the normalization of many inappropriate content harms the social structure on the one hand, there is also a use of social media which makes social integrity mosaic."

It is also preferred thanks to its ease of use

Noting that the TikTok platform has a number of editing tools that allow users to create interesting and entertaining video images, Ünal said that thanks to its simple tools and ease of use, anyone can create short videos, and that TikTok is a preferred application due to its natural and comfortable structure, unlike other applications.

Precautions should be taken for videos as soon as possible!

Stating that TikTok is almost like a room of the homes of people from various cultures, Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal expressed that "In fact, people present a reflection of their homes in this medium; however, while doing this, they spread inappropriate content in most cases, as if they are unaware that they are in a digital environment. There are privacy violations, inappropriate language, negative exemplary behaviors, and these have the potential to transform the perception of family. Children can be noticed by applying all the conversations and behaviors they see and hear there to their family at home and to their friends at school. In the same way, adults can increase their negative impact by shooting or sharing similar videos. It is known that the power of negative influence on social media spreads 6 times more than positive. Measures should be taken as soon as possible for TikTok videos that spread like a virus, harm social integrity, family structure and values, and generally contain inappropriate content."

Should TikTok be shut down?

Stating that the agenda of TikTok, the China-based social media application, is to close it now, Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal made the following remarks:

"The closure of a platform with 150 million users in the USA and more than 30 million users in Türkiye is a very radical decision; however, profit and loss determination must be done well here. If damages prevail, legal measures must be taken. Misuse of social media applications is a form of crime."

Pointing out the importance of gaining digital literacy skills as a precaution for people to become conscious users, Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal stated that "Enactment can be considered as another measure. As the social media law has been put on the agenda and its work has been initiated, legal sanctions should also be addressed in the case of TikTok. On the one hand, the authorities are working to close it, on the other hand, TikTok officials are making efforts not to close it."

Efforts to close TikTok have also been initiated in Türkiye

Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal explained that it is a process to realize that this is not a war zone, to carry out legal studies such as what kind of behaviors and posts will be considered a crime or what the sanctions will be in these channels within the legal framework for the purpose of taking 'precautions', and that these studies are supported by creating a social perception, and continued her remarks as follows:

"In order for this process to work in a healthy way, it is important to inform the society regularly. According to legal studies conducted in the US in 2024, the TikTok law was signed by US President Joe Biden. Accordingly, if TikTok is not sold to an American company within 9 months, it will be banned and TikTok will be prevented from downloading.

We see that efforts have been initiated to close TikTok in Türkiye. Officials said that they are preparing a bill that includes the closure of the TikTok application on the grounds that it is a medium where images and behaviors that are not suitable for the Turkish family structure and culture are shared."

Videos featuring children

Emphasizing that it is necessary to evaluate whether it is a crime and whether there is child abuse in most videos featuring children, as earning income with videos on TikTok can both contain obscenity and be considered tax evasion, Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal stated that "The place for this evaluation is the judicial authorities. Banning social media platforms will not directly lead to behavioral change, so efforts should be started for permanent solutions."

Assoc. Prof. Aylin Tutgun Ünal said that people asked her about the TikTok platform. Ünal expressed that people can make a self-assessment by asking "Why are we entering the TikTok platform? What is our purpose? Does what we provide from the TikTok platform have a counterpart in everyday life? What else can we do with the time to dedicate to the TikTok platform? Does the TikTok platform have a gain for children? Is the TikTok platform very necessary in daily social life? Is there any benefit to the TikTok platform?"

 

Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)