Beginning of the Trajectory
There is one app that captivates millions daily. Can you guess what app that is? It's TikTok.
In
Year 2, I explored this phenomenon in my academic essay "TikTok as Contemporary
Media
Spectacle". I analysed TikTok through three aspects:
⑴ Algorithmic Control: shapes feeds and fuel filter bubbles, misinformation,
and viral trends
⑵ Mediated Reality: curated content and livestreams blur the line between real
and hyperreal
⑶ Alienation: users commodify their identities and chase idealised personas at
the expense of authenticity
While writing this paper, I started to see how with the constant exposure of media, it causes us to be trapped in a mediated environment that is controlled by algorithms, proving that the social media apps we use are not just a platform. It is a powerful manifestation of the media spectacle in our digital age.
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Before bed, I always end up scrolling TikTok. Over time, I noticed a pattern: late at night, my feed shifts into heavier, more emotional content. It showed me videos that are more reflective or personal. However, during the day, the difference is constrasting. The same feed becomes energetic, loud, and comedic. It feels like the algorithm knows me a little too well, as it if knows exactly how I feel in that moment.
It made me wonder: how does my feed know exactly how I feel? The timing is uncanny. Sometimes the continuous scrolling and consumption of the videos push me deeper into an existential spiral. Even on Instagram, I can talk to my friends about something in person, and suddenly it appears on my feed as an ad. The more it happens, the more it felt like the platforms are sensing, predicting, and responding to my emotional state in ways I never explicitly shared.
This critical reflection sparked my drive to intern at TikTok, allowing me to work closer with
the product itself, and to deepen my understanding of the algorithmic influence.
With
that, this research project "A-I: Algorithmic Identities" was born.