TikTok is doing something about it versus content promoting the manifesto Osama bin Laden composed discussing his expected inspirations for the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In a declaration on X (previously Twitter), TikTok states it’s “proactively and strongly eliminating this material and examining how it got onto our platform.”
Lots of videos about the manifesto, entitled “Letter to America,” have actually appeared on TikTok over the previous numerous days, with CNN reporting the subject collected “a minimum of” 14 million views by Thursday. Initially released in 2002, the manifesto slams the United States federal government’s existence in the Middle East and assistance of Israel. Nevertheless, some developers are now attempting to use that criticism to the United States federal government’s reaction to the continuous Israel-Hamas war.
One video, which has actually considering that been gotten rid of from TikTok, had a text overlay stating “attempting to return to life as regular after checking out Osama Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’ and recognizing whatever we found out about the Middle East, 9/11, and ‘terrorism’ was a lie.”
TikTok no longer reveals any outcomes when you try to look for “Letter to America,” and the Guardian, which released an equated variation of the letter in 2002, took it down on Wednesday after it started distributing on the platform. When it was initially released, the Guardian stated the letter was distributed amongst “British Islamic extremists.”
” Material promoting this letter plainly breaks our guidelines on supporting any type of terrorism,” TikTok composes on X. “This is not special to TikTok and has actually appeared throughout numerous platforms and the media.” TikTok includes the variety of videos published on the subject is “little and reports of it trending on our platform are incorrect.”
Previously today, TikTok pressed back on claims it was lax on pro-Palestinian material, declaring both Instagram and Facebook likewise had actually more posts tagged with #FreePalestine than #standwithIsrael. The platform states it likewise does not permit “incorrect, deceptive, or incorrect material that might trigger considerable damage to people or society, despite intent.”
The Israel-Hamas war has actually been a big test for TikTok, and the platform will just continue to deal with pressure to strictly moderate its material, particularly considering that almost one-third of young people utilize TikTok to get their news.