TikTok: The New Fad?

During the onset of the shutdowns forced by the Covid-19 pandemic, there was a significant rise in TikTok downloads with TikTok being the most downloaded app in the spring of 2020. This begs the question, is TikTok "the" social media platform to be a part of right now? From the surface level, the answer is yes! But why?

In the spring of 2020, move states and cities were shutting down and going into a quarantine to help combat the rise and spread of the Covid-19 virus. Due to this, people were secluded from the outside work, sometimes even alone, trying to fight the loneliness and uncertainty the pandemic brought with it. Then came TikTok, an app that had ordinary people creating short videos of funny stories, dances and more! It was a way for people from all over the country and even world to come together to entertain and spread happiness. It was a beautiful escape from the lonely darkness of quarantine.

Another reason why I think TikTok may be the new “it” app is because of our society’s inability to pay attention and keep focus. We have become a society where we can get whatever we need from the touch of our fingers. We have a “right-now” and instant society, and people have lost patience. Facebook and Twitter mean that people have to read long posts, when TikTok offers short videos that share information, funny jokes and stories and more. Our attention span has gotten shorter, which means we need our information in a shorter amount of time. The days of long ramblings on Facebook are long gone. Now are the days of 60-second rants on TikTok; and these are the days that will stay.