TikTok suppressed content critical of Trump, exclusive report alleges

As the Trump administration continues to work towards keeping TikTok available in the United States, a new report has revealed that the popular app has been suppressing content critical of President Donald Trump. The report, exclusively shared with Fox News, was conducted by the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) at Rutgers University.

According to the report, TikTok has been selectively suppressing content that is critical of President Trump, leading to concerns about the app’s lack of transparency and accountability. Adam Sohn, a board member of NCRI, expressed his concerns about TikTok’s policies being based on political expediency rather than consistent content moderation.

The report analyzed specific hashtags associated with the 2020 election controversy, such as “#RiggedElection,” “#VoterFraud,” “#StopTheSteal,” and “#StolenElection.” Researchers found that these terms returned no results on TikTok in the U.S., but when searched from an overseas location, videos related to these hashtags were found. This led to suspicions about TikTok’s algorithm being manipulated to suppress certain content.

TikTok has denied the allegations, stating that the terms being suppressed were associated with election misinformation and profanity. The company also cited technical issues as a reason for limited search results. The app is currently facing scrutiny over its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, and a law that would ban TikTok if it failed to sell by a certain deadline. The Biden administration has also cited NCRI’s reports in its arguments against TikTok.

Cybersecurity experts have weighed in on the issue, noting that evaluating algorithms for apps like TikTok can be challenging due to their complexity and the close oversight of parent companies. Social media platforms have large teams working to moderate content, which can lead to discrepancies in what is considered a violation.

Overall, the report raises concerns about TikTok’s content moderation practices and the potential for political bias. As the app continues to navigate legal challenges and negotiations with the U.S. government, the issue of transparency and accountability remains at the forefront.