As of January 2021, Tik Tok has reached 689 million active users worldwide, which placed the social media network next to Instagram and Facebook. Despite its massive popularity, TikTok is still facing difficulties regarding race equality, especially in terms of African American communities and users.
In July 2021, numerous black TikTok users, including the famous Comedian Ziggi Tyler, discovered that pro black phrases could not be used for Creator Marketplace posts while anti black terms were allowed.
Sharen Eddings, a self-taught coder, and owner of Codewithsharen LLC, posted a TikTok demo video on her page. Emphasizing how social networks can write algorithms that search for words or phrases containing the word “black,” and block users from posting content containing it. Algorithms are a set of instructions or system of rules written in a particular programming language that a computer follows in order to perform a task.
Ziggy Tyler’s post compelled Sharen to explain to her audience how easy social networks can block black creators and users with a simple algorithm. It took Sharen less than three minutes to edit a block of code that would prevent TikTok users from using the word “black” or phrases containing the word “black.”
“Does TikTok Have a Race Problem” is one of the questions that Sharen’s demo video is meant to provide an answer for. It shows a simplified version of an algorithm that censors selected keywords and can be used to block users from the platform.
According to Insider’s recent post, a TikTok spokesperson has apologized for the incident and explained the other side of the medal:
“Our TikTok Creator Marketplace protections, which flag phrases typically associated with hate speech, were erroneously set to flag phrases without respect to word order. We recognize and apologize for how frustrating this was to experience, and our team is working quickly to fix this significant error. To be clear, Black Lives Matter does not violate our policies and currently has over 27 billion views on our platform.”
Racial insensitivity is a pressing topic for all social media networks, and Sharen’s contribution to raising awareness about racial inequality will hopefully influence platform owners to hasten their efforts to address the aforementioned issues. In the meantime, Sharen is focused on helping children and students by teaching STEM education.
Sharen Eddings is the technical founder of Codewithsharen LLC, an American company that is focused on teaching code development. As a self-taught coder herself, Sharen’s expertise and thorough approach has helped thousands of students learn more about code development. Crystal Hawkins, a satisfied Codewithsharen’s client, praised Sharen’s diligence, stating:
“Sharon is patient, kind, and explained everything so well. My middle-schooler looks forward to his coding classes and she encourages him to be his best self and think critically. CodewithSharen has been a blessing.“
More information about Codewithsharen LLC can be found on the brand’s official website.
Media Contact
Company Name: Codewithsharen LLC
Contact Person: Sharen L Eddings
Email: Send Email
Country: United States
Website: https://codewithsharen.com
