TikTok Rejects Holocaust Day Commemoration, Prevents Users From Searching Related Content

JAKARTA - Ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day, TikTok expressed its rejection of the incident on its short video application.

In this case, TikTok is not alone, he invites the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the World Jewish Congress (WJC). According to UNESCO, as much as 17 percent of Holocaust-related content on short video apps denies or distorts events.

The Holocaust was the systematic massacre of six million Jews by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. As reported by the official website of the Holocaust Museum in the United States (US), ushmm.org, the word holocaust comes from the Greek word meaning sacrifice with fire.

To address this anniversary, TikTok said it had put its full strength into eliminating hate. Later, if users search for terms related to the Holocaust, they will be directed to accurate information.

They will now see a banner at the top of the results page asking them to visit the WJC and UNESCO websites on the Holocaust.org to learn more.

According to BBC International, Friday, January 28, users will also be redirected to the website if they search for hashtags such as #HolocaustSurvivor or #HolocaustRemembrance. Going forward, TikTok will also add a permanent banner at the bottom of every video discussing the Holocaust, which will direct users to official information.

"We believe education plays an important role in eliminating hate," said TikTok's director of government relations, Elizabeth Kanter.

"Hateful behavior is incompatible with TikTok's inclusive environment, and we will continue to exert our full strength to keep our platform a hate-free place, while harnessing the power of TikTok to educate our community."

WJC President Ronald Lauder welcomed the new measures and said, "TikTok is known for its ability to reach a younger audience, many of whom are unaware of the horrors of the Holocaust, and are highly susceptible to misinformation," Lauder said.

Especially in a pandemic situation like this, it will exacerbate threats and misinformation on various online platforms, including TikTok.

UNESCO said disinformation about the Holocaust and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories had spiked dramatically on social media platforms since the start of the pandemic.

In August last year, the Center for Countering Digital Hatred accused major social media platforms of failing to remove more than 80 percent of anti-Semitic posts on their platforms. The research includes Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube.