BBC News: It was only this month that TikTok began to be used for news after the start of the Russia-Russia war Ukraine. However, BBC Newswatch host Samira Ahmed asked if the bill simply provided “free content to people who would never pay the license fee”. He was interviewed by BBC News digital director Naja Nilsson, who tried to defend the BBC’s use of the Chinese social media platform.
BBC News has only 12,700 followers on TikTok, compared to 20 million followers on Instagram.
However, Mrs. Ahmed explained. “TikTok is now a place where a growing number of people go shopping for their news.
“The app has become, by some estimates, the most popular online destination.”
Commentators have called Russia’s war against Ukraine the world’s first “TikTok war” with a wealth of information on the conflict.
Mrs. Nilsson said: “From the very beginning of the war, we could see that TikTok became a place with a lot of information about the war, but also misinformation about the war.
“We felt it would be wrong not to be there.
“We wanted to take part in that conversation.”
However, when pressured about how TikTok works as a news source, Ms. Nilsson admitted that she did not know yet.
Ms Ahmed then grumbled about whether the BBC was providing “free content” or trying to “suffocate” her journalism to attract young viewers.
He asked. “Does it drive viewers to other BBC content, or is it just free content for people who will never pay for a license?”
Mrs. Nilsson confessed. “We at TikTok have no evidence yet.”
Since the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, TikTok videos tagged #Ukraine have exceeded 33 billion views.
A report in the New York Times found that, in proportion, TikTok’s Ukrainian content was more than double the size of the platforms.
