TikTok extremism exposed: over 1,000 videos found including Holocaust denial, white supremacy, and ISIS propaganda, according to new report

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TikTok extremism exposed: over 1,000 videos found including Holocaust denial, white supremacy, and ISIS propaganda, according to new report
The study found 1,030 videos featuring keywords associated with extremism. NurPhoto/Getty Images
  • On Tuesday, The Institute of Strategic Dialogue unveiled a report examining hate speech on TikTok.
  • The think tank found that a third of the 1,030 extremist videos uncovered promoted white supremacy.
  • At the time of writing the report, 81.5% of these videos were still live on the platform.
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New research released by a counter-extremism think tank found that over 1,000 TikToks featuring hate speech and extremist views were uploaded to the site, with 83% posted in the three months leading up to June 4, when the research project began.

The videos amount to over 8 hours of extremist content, and suggest a "considerable enforcement gap" by TikTok, Ciarán O'Connor, a researcher from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (IDS) told Insider.

The London-based think tank published the report Tuesday and said that 491 accounts shared a combined 1,030 videos that promoted hatred, extremism, and terrorism. The content was uncovered by researchers through a series of searches in the app using keywords associated with extremism.

Over a third of the videos analyzed were identified as promoting white supremacist content. The most-viewed video, which was seen 2 million times, promoted anti-Asian hate and spread COVID-19 misinformation.

Other videos the think tank reported as being the most viewed in their research sample include two that falsely deny the Bosnian genocide and the Holocaust occurred. Three videos, which were viewed a combined 3.5 million times, were reposts of content originally produced by Paul Miller, who is currently incarcerated and is known for advocating for genocide and neo-Nazism.

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TikTok extremism exposed: over 1,000 videos found including Holocaust denial, white supremacy, and ISIS propaganda, according to new report
Over 13 videos originally produced by Christchurch mosque attacker Brenton Tarrant were identified. MARK MITCHELL/AFP/Getty Images

The research found 246 videos featuring support "for extremist individuals and organizations," including footage originally produced by the terrorist group ISIS, and 13 videos containing footage produced by Christchurch mosque attacker Brenton Tarrant.

Anti-Black hate also featured in 139 videos that included blackface, praising the KKK, using racial slurs, and promoting hatred against George Floyd, who was murdered by a white police officer last year. A total of 28 extremist videos identified by the ISD made reference to Floyd, while antisemitism was also identified as being a common theme, with 26 videos found to promote Holocaust denial.

At the time of writing the report, the Institute found that 81.5% of the extremist videos they identified on the platform were still live. The think tank also found that if ejected from TikTok, some were able to return to the platform with identical usernames.

TikTok extremism exposed: over 1,000 videos found including Holocaust denial, white supremacy, and ISIS propaganda, according to new report
Several comments on these videos linked to white supremacist channels on encrypted messaging app Telegram. Carl Court/Getty Images

Speaking to USA Today, O'Connor said that in the comment sections of these videos, users would ask or advise each other on how to find more extremist material and that he regularly spotted links to Telegram channels promoting white supremacist content. Telegram is a private messaging app that is reported to have a significant far-right and extremist user base.

"If we have one main takeaway, it's that content promoting hatred and supportive of extremism (in various forms) is easily discoverable on TikTok," O'Connor said in a statement to Insider.

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"TikTok is home to communities of creators who use the platform to primarily target others, based on their protected attributes, or to promote extremist figures, groups, or ideologies," he said.

He added that while "hateful and extremist content is removed on TikTok," the "removal process appears to be carried out inconsistently."

A spokesperson for TikTok told Insider, "TikTok categorically prohibits violent extremism and hateful behavior, and our dedicated team will remove any such content as it violates our policies and undermines the creative and joyful experience people expect on our platform. We greatly value our collaboration with ISD and others whose critical research on industry-wide challenges helps strengthen how we enforce our policies to keep our platform safe and welcoming."

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