TikTokBy Kudzi Chikumbu, Director of Creator Community, TikTok US and Tara Wadhwa, Director of Policy, TikTok US
People around the world come to TikTok to be entertained and to express themselves creatively. The immense diversity of people and content on our platform is what makes TikTok such a special place – from people outlining the sources of their unique qualities through the mosaic trend to sharing their customs and traditional food with #culturechallenge. We are driven by our passion to maintain a welcoming environment for our global community, and over the last year we’ve introduced a range of features aimed at fostering kindness and preventing bullying.
Today we're taking another step with the launch of #CreateKindness, a global campaign and a creative video series aimed at raising awareness around online bullying and how we can all choose kindness.
Promoting awareness around bullying
At TikTok, we value the trust of our community and work hard to maintain it by cultivating an inclusive atmosphere. Bullying behavior damages the trust-based nature of the app by harming people's confidence in themselves. We're mindful that although in-app interactions may seem harmless to some, the impact of people's online experiences don't always disappear when they close the app. This is why we greatly value the stories from our community about their experiences and why we invest in measures to help TikTok remain a place where kindness and compassion thrive.
As part of our ongoing commitment to promote online kindness, we're launching on our @TikTokTips account an animated video series that tells the real and personal stories of six creator-animators whose distinct animation styles complements their diverse experiences.
Through their videos, these talented creators offer perspectives on how to counter bullying, show the unintended impact this harmful behavior can have, and remind us why it's important that we work together to prevent it.
- In "Block the Bullies" @milkymichii shows how to deal with unkind Duets.
- Through the introspective "Why Would You..." @recokh illuminates how his insecurities are behind the desire to be unkind to others and how to navigate these feelings.
- With "I Want to Hold On To" @kellyemmrich shares how to overcome negative comments by focusing on the communities that celebrate her.
- In "Walk Away" @wowrightmeow gives advice on how they deal with people intentionally misrepresenting their thoughts.
- In "Power of Words" @rosie.gif explores the impact that micro-aggressions can have and implores people to think before they post.
- Through "What We Don't See" @king.science encourages people to treat one another with care and compassion.
By using their distinctive animation styles and voices, and revealing themselves at the end of the videos, these creators drive home an important message: behind every account is a real human being who deserves to be treated with kindness and respect.
Spreading kindness on TikTok
TikTok communities thrive when kindness and care are at the forefront. Videos using hashtags related to kindness, including #love and #kindness, have garnered over 400 billion views and generated almost 50 billion video creations around the world.
Heart stickers and creative effects are also among the most popular product features used on TikTok to celebrate kindness. These have been added to over 2 billion videos globally in the past year, with our communities in the US, Philippines, Indonesia, Brazil, and Mexico using them the most.
Fostering kindness on TikTok
We're committed to promoting well-being and positive online behavior as we strive to make meaningful and enjoyable experiences possible for everyone. This includes working to remove content and accounts associated with harassment and bullying. Bullying is not tolerated on TikTok, and we work to combat it through our policies, features, and partners, such as the Cyberbullying Research Center, as we continue to champion comprehensive approaches to online safety.
In addition to these videos, which can be found all month within our Discover page and on @TikTokTips, we invite our community to participate in the #CreateKindness hashtag challenge by creating TikTok videos that share the heart-warming moments and comments that inspire you to spread kindness.
Through this campaign, we invite our community to choose, celebrate, and create kindness with one another, every day.
New to TikTok? Find out more and simply download the app for free via the Apple App Store, Google Play or Amazon.
