This story includes discussion of suicide.Back in 2021, TikTok tweaked its algorithm in an effort to address dangerous filter bubbles — a sort of algorithmic spiral of recommendations for high-risk content like extreme dieting or self-harm. But internal company documents obtained by Bloomberg Businessweek show 10% of U.S. users — 15 million Americans — were purposely excluded from this safety update. This was part of user testing to validate the new feature and track whether it reduced engagement with the famously sticky platform.One of those users was then-16-year-old Chase Nasca, who subsequently died by suicide. Olivia Carville, Bloomberg Businessweek investigative reporter, has been on the story.More on this“TikTok Withheld a Safety Feature From Millions. One Died by Suicide” from Bloomberg“Meta, others lose appeal to drop thousands of social media addiction lawsuits” from Axios“Meta and YouTube held liable for their addictive products” from “Marketplace Tech”
TikTok excluded millions from crucial safety guardrails
An internal document reveals the short-form video platform excluded 15 million American users from its algorithm update that was meant to limit their exposure to harmful content.
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