If you’re going to get sucked in by social media, at least make it worthwhile.
TikTok, and many other platforms, use a “black-box” algorithm — an AI recommendation system that studies what captures the users’ attention to keep them scrolling.
TikTok has one of the more alarming algorithms, “powering one of the most addictive apps of our time,” according to an Axios
The algorithm, which powers the “For You Page” (FYP), analyzes likes, shares and how long you watch a video for to personalize your feed, creating the rabbit holes that users often find themselves in.
It learns what you linger on more so than what you “like” and gives you more of that content in large volumes.
“If you don’t actively steer it, it will steer you,” Axios warned.
Content that makes you laugh, cry or get angry is the content that keeps you watching, because that’s what makes you stay on the video.
Social media platforms design their algorithms so it’s not easy to skirt around, but there are ways to narrow your experience into something you actually want to view.
Evading the algorithm will help users see more posts from friends, family and trusted news sources rather than random recommended videos put on the feed with the intention of getting your attention.
While there’s no way to completely shut off TikTok’s algorithm, Axios shared tricks and tips to reset it and rebuild your feed to have a better experience on the app.
It’s recommended first to stop watching the “For You” page, the main page when a consumer opens the app. The “FYP,” as users call it, shows videos that it thinks will keep you on the app for a longer amount of time.
Instead, start scrolling through the “Following” feed, which only shows videos posted by friends or creators you have chosen to follow.
Axios also suggests “pruning” the algorithm and training it to know what you want. By holding down on a video, an option to tap “Not Interested” will pop up. Using that will help the algorithm know to show you less of that kind of content, and it’s suggested to use it liberally to fix your feed.
You can also train it to learn the content you do want to see by using the search bar to seek it out. This will signal to the algorithm that you enjoy it and want more of it.
Since TikTok’s algorithm pays more attention to how long you watch a video for rather than how you interact with it, hate-watching a video will act as an indication that you want more of it. That’s why it’s important to scroll away and not spend time on rage bait.
Finally, if you want to go the extreme route, there’s the option of clearing all data and completely rebooting the algorithm. To do this, go to TikTok’s settings and select “content preferences.” Then tap “refresh your For You feed,” and TikTok will forget everything it knows about you.
