← Back to context

Comment by comboy

6 hours ago

I'm too late but I'm surprised HN crowd treats tiktok as some weaponized addiction machine. Youtube used to have a working recommendation system and it was usable too. Is it really bad to give me woodworking and learning chinese videos if that's what I'm interested in at the moment? If somebody is not interested in anything specific and just want to zone out, is it really different if he scrolls through tiktok or watches the same thing put into longer videos on TV or some other site? I see zero rational argument being made here. Should we ban bikes if they are the most efficient transportation mode in given area because people get addicted to them?

6 comments

comboy

Reply
tock  5 hours ago

> tiktok as some weaponized addiction machine

It is.

> Is it really bad to give me woodworking and learning chinese videos if that's what I'm interested in at the moment?

Youtube shorts is pretty similar to tiktok imo.

> is it really different if he scrolls through tiktok or watches the same thing put into longer videos on TV or some other site?

Yes because TV is just stuff shown to everyone. You aren't getting personalised content.

> Should we ban bikes if they are the most efficient transportation mode in given area because people get addicted to them?

Do people get addicted to bikes? People do get addicted to drugs. Maybe we should ban drugs? Oh wait we do.

  • comboy  5 hours ago

    People do get addicted to bikes. Not even questionable. But of course that's not a charitable interpretation, and on that - yes I don't think personalized content is comparable to heroin. What is so evil about personalized content?

    I'm sincerely trying to understand. Your whole argument here is based on the premise that TV is OK because it's not personalized.

    • tock  5 hours ago

      Yes my entire argument is that recommendation algorithms are designed to cause addiction. Some incredibly smart people have been working on this and they have succeeded wildly. And without personalised content the problem goes away. And that the problem is most acute in short form video platforms like tiktok, instagram shorts and youtube reels. And yes I do consider it closer to drugs than ..... bikes.

      1 reply →