After the inevitable, unfortunate death of Vine and the conclusion of the Classic Vine era, TikTok rose to fame and is now a gigantic part of our culture. As a frequent user of YouTube and Instagram, and someone familiar with the mainstream popularity of the content creator/influencer/streamer, TikTok is literally everywhere. Every popular person on the Internet is on TikTok, has a TikTok, or has gotten their start on this platform.
Yet, I refuse to make a TikTok account.
Outside of the potential banning of the app — which is a whole other can of worms — I always saw TikTok as a shittier version of Vine. Vine, while arguably a silly thing, to me has gained a posthumous reputation of being condensed 10-minute plays. There is a set up or premise, and then the punchline. All in six seconds. I regularly quote “Road Work Ahead” while in the car with my boyfriend and occasionally I’ll listen to compilations on YouTube.
Now don’t get me wrong; I know that especially in the online space TikTok is a huge tool; a huge way to reach viewers; and a great way to entertain, make money, educate, or all three. Short-form content seems to be having a big boom nowadays anyway. But after hearing my coworkers and others online talk about how easy it is to just scroll through TikTok mindlessly, getting those quick little dopamine hits — it seems like a rabbit hole I just don’t want to go down.
I get enough of that with Instagram. Plus everyone I would be interested in following is already on YouTube; I’ve always preferred long-form content myself.
It’ll be interesting to see if the fate of TikTok is challenged moving forward, but even if it isn’t, you won’t find me on it.
