The social media app TikTok, which allows people to make and share 15 to 60 second videos, has grown into a phenomenon with over 500 million users since its release date in September 2016.
TikTok has been particularly popular among teenagers, and anyone 13 or older can make an account and view all public videos. TikTok had over one billion downloads in 2018, which surpassed Instagram download rates. Even though TikTok has been available on the app store for three years, people are still wondering what the app is and why it’s such a recent trend.
“[TikTok] is popular because [teenagers] like watching funny videos,” Woodside freshman Caroline Peck said. “They get [TikTok] as a joke, and then, they slowly get addicted.”
Users could share six-second videos on Vine, an app similar to TikTok that was popular from 2013 to 2017. Unfortunately, the creators of Vine ended the app.
“It’s like Vine, and people can post their creativity on there,” Woodside freshman Chloe Mascarina shared.
Many people are “addicted” to this app because without it they wouldn’t feel up-to-date with all the new fads on social media.
“Everything is on TikTok now— all the trends, all the memes,” Mascarnia said.
In fact, Peck explained teachers are using TikTok as a way to help students.
“I’ve seen a lot of [videos] where teachers are making Google Classrooms for certain subjects and sharing it on TikTok,” Peck said. “So anyone can come and help themselves to learn on TikTok.”
One teacher created a TikTok video to advertise their Google Classroom site for students to join. Despite all the different opinions about TikTok, a majority of students interviewed find nothing wrong with TikTok and enjoy using the app.
“I like to look at other peoples [videos] because it’s all original, and everyone makes really funny videos and good stuff I’ve never seen before,” said Woodside sophomore Dahlia Crane.
