The Rise of TikTok: A Socio-Cultural Analysis

Introduction

In the last few years, TikTok has emerged as the leading application in social networking platforms, altering how content is shared. TikTok mainly comprises short videos and is among the leading social-cultural platforms influencing culture and communication, including social media and digital businesses. Analyzing several factors will help understand how it has managed to gain such a position. Evaluating TikTok’s rise is possible through its impact on popular culture, the democratization of content creation, and its role in shaping new forms of social interaction.

Impact on Popular Culture

Through viral activity, TikTok has become the chief significant exponent of the popular culture of the present day. For instance, following the concept of mass-copying technology, TikTok finally surpassed the time and space constraints and fostered a popular culture for the audience and the world.¹ TikTok’s algorithm works with content based on likes rather than followers, which means that trends emerge rapidly and spread globally within hours. Such social trends include viral challenges, dance moves, and memes, forming the current culture that dominates social sites, mainstream media, fashion, and consumer trends. Thus, TikTok is a cultural powerhouse because it can escalate these trends by creating a positive feedback loop in which the online culture feeds into the offline and vice versa.

1. Oda I. B. Hariyanto, “Implementation of TikTok Popular Culture as a Digital Marketing Technique to Attract Consumers,” The Seybold Report Journal 17, no. 107 (2021): 266, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6865409.

Democratization of Content Creation

Through TikTok, it has become somewhat easy for anyone to make content wherever they are. Apart from using an algorithm that ranks content with a high level of engagement at the top before considering the followers of the creators, making content creation readily available for everyone as long as they are creative and constantly engage with others actively is another factor that makes TikTok successful.² It is costly to produce, upload, and share content using other social media platforms compared to TikTok, which only requires a smartphone, enabling many young people to share many things with a large audience. The platform does not pay much attention to production standards, which boosts content creation and ensures people stick together through the ‘family’ feeling. Hence, through the democratization of content creation, TikTok promotes self-expression and cultural exchange, giving anyone across the globe a chance to be heard and celebrated.

2. Sameer Babu M et al., “Content Marketing in the Era of Short-Form Video: TikTok and Beyond,” Journal of Informatics Education and Research 4, no. 2 (July 16, 2024): 2706, https://doi.org/10.52783/jier.v4i2.1179.

Shaping New Forms of Social Interaction

TikTok has created new communication methods primarily utilized by Generation Z individuals. For example, like Facebook, TikTok permits messages, comments, and duets, among other social interactional options.³ These methods ensure that people engage in discussions globally, be part of multiple collaborations, and respond to comments, making the world a close-knit virtual village. Therefore, TikTok offers new means of communication, turning it from a content-sharing platform into a social space in which users contribute and co-create culture in a real-time mode.

3. Aparajita Bhandari and Sara Bimo, “Why’s Everyone on TikTok Now? The Algorithmized Self and the Future of Self-Making on Social Media,” Social Media + Society 8, no. 1 (March 22, 2022): 9, https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051221086241.

Conclusion

The effect on mainstream culture, making content creation accessible to everyone, and introducing new social interaction practices are some of the main aspects that show the rise of TikTok socially and culturally. TikTok promotes popular culture through market trends and style, bringing people together. In addition, it eradicates biases based on the type of person or their location, fostering a more inclusive and diverse digital community. Further, through modern communication methods, such as content collaborations and comments, TikTok facilitates the rapid exchange of ideas and cultural practices across borders. In summary, the app is a global cultural melting pot where diverse voices and trends converge and influence each other.

Bibliography

Babu M, Sameer, Asif Iqbal, Susmita Saha, Chaitanya Koneti, Lima Nasrin Eni, Irudhayamary Premkumar, and Sweta Suman. “Content Marketing in the Era of Short-Form Video: TikTok and Beyond.” Journal of Informatics Education and Research 4, no. 2 (July 16, 2024): 2700–2707. https://doi.org/10.52783/jier.v4i2.1179.

Bhandari, Aparajita, and Sara Bimo. “Why’s Everyone on TikTok Now? The Algorithmized Self and the Future of Self-Making on Social Media.” Social Media + Society 8, no. 1 (March 22, 2022): 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051221086241.

Hariyanto, Oda I. B. “Implementation of TikTok Popular Culture as a Digital Marketing Technique to Attract Consumers.” The Seybold Report Journal 17, no. 107 (2021): 266–277. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6865409.