It's already (recently) been shown that what the recommends in TikTok do tend to skew pro-PRC and pro-PRC party line on issues that the PRC cares about. The PRC proper and international issues like their ME relations, such as Gaza (where even a recent PRC presentation managed to erase the Israeli borders and label the area "Palestine" ... Tres a la Hamas). If you're pro-PRC they through you more pro-PRC recs, if you're anti-PRC they still more often than not give you pro-PRC recs. It's not all reinforcing what you prefer, the usual complaint. So, yeah, there's a "let's manipulate the impressionable youth" component to it.
Their recommend algorithm isn't just there to bump up the number of views. There's also a push for some preferred topics to be viewed--I imagine this means some people will be turned off and *reduce* the number of views. So it's not a pure "capitalist", view-driven algorithm. Hate it on Facebook, hate it on TikTok.
However, this issue is mostly a canard, a misdirect, and a fairly blatant one. One online source did justice to the issue when it pointed out the irony implicit in a Kavanaugh question that made it all but a "gotcha question". The gist of the question was whether they thought it possible that years after you did something as a teenager, say when you're in government or up for some important governmental post, something embarrassing from your teen years could suddenly show up to skewer you and slam your possible appointment or position or compromise you after the fact? The TikTok lawyer was simply stuck. He couldn't answer "no" given the circumstance; to answer "yes" would be to concede the national security point or be forced to argue that the PRC was not a security concern. So he avoided the question and the justices came back to it. As they should have.
The same "youthful indiscretion" bit could be said for a previous (D) governor. Or any number of other people. Heck, I know adults who do stupid things and immediately regret it--once and done, the act reflects some stupid whim or poor decision or lack of thinking because of those LI iced teas and while it may reflect a weakness it doesn't reflect a deeply held character trait or habit.
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