Many celebrities, content creators, and influencers have flocked to the now highly-popularized social media platform TikTok, but according to an in-depth report obtained by The Intercept, the app's moderators have been censoring videos by users deemed too "ugly, poor, or disabled." The publication revealed that the platform's moderators are suppressing content from it's physically unappealing, financially-challenged, and disabled participants in order to attract more users to TikTok. Unfortunately, the method has been partially the reason why the app has been so successful as TikTok utilizes coveted influencers and challenges for their platform racking up over 1.5 billion users and achieving approximately 614 million app downloads this year alone, according to MediaKix. 

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Recently, CEO, Steve Huffman, dubbed the China-based app as "parasitic," after witnessing a steep increase in interest of the app while singer/songwriter Lizzo has feuded with the platform after the removal and replacement of her bathing suit video content. 

One particular note in the exposed moderator documentation states that the officials should 'hide' content featuring "rural poverty, slums, beer bellies, and crooked smiles." A 'modesty code' instilled within the company has also led to the removal of content featuring bikini or swimming suits "outside of a beach or swimming occasion." With the app's handlers based in China, political censorship has been adamant as the moderator docs to ban users who "harmed 'national honor.'" While political content has been able to find its way onto the platform from time to time, anything in regards to political propaganda will and has been removed especially content critical of the Communist Party of China. 

A TikTok spokesperson revealed that 'most of' the exposed guideline documents are "either no longer in use, or in some cases appear to never have been in place."

TikTok has been a major benefit for musicians with challenges like K Camp's #RenegadeChallenge and Drake's #FlipTheSwitchChallenge taking over the platform and adding to their streaming numbers. While challenges like the #SkullBreakerChallenge have guided the youth down the wrong path and led to legal disputes throughout several different communities.

Hopefully, TikTok's discriminatory practices are no longer in effect and people from all types of different backgrounds get the exposure they deserve for their content. Check out the official TikTok moderation documentation in the Twitter post provided below. 

The term “parasite” has been in recent times associated with a critically-acclaimed foreign film that made history by winning “Best Picture” at the 2020 Oscars a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, that’s not the case for how the word was used by  CEO Steve Huffman recently when he expressed his feelings about the wildly-popular social media app TikTok.

Chesnot/Getty Images

While speaking on a panel called Social 2030 in front of a large group of Silicon Valley investors, Huffman responded to TikTok possibly being a platform that they could learn from by saying, “Maybe I’m going to regret this, but I can’t even get to that level of thinking with them.” He went on to add, “Because I look at that app as so fundamentally parasitic, that it’s always listening, the fingerprinting technology they use is truly terrifying, and I could not bring myself to install an app like that on my phone.” Huffman added an extra two cents to his harsh opinion by saying, “I actively tell people, ‘Don’t install that spyware on your phone.'” A spokesperson for TikTok responded to his accusations, telling TechCruch exclusively, “These are baseless accusations made without a shred of evidence.”

Even though and TikTok are in no way competing, could Steve Huffman be simply hating on the popularity of TikTok or does he have a point worth paying attention to? Sound off with your thoughts down below in the comments after checking out Megan Thee Stallion‘s hilarious #RideOrDieChallenge TikTok compilation video: