"We are not perfect": Interview with a Tiktok Israel spokeswoman
One of the powerful people on the growing platform is Natalie Ziv, the head of the communications network of all the growing countries in Europe, including Israel, who has to deal with the claim of addiction and the content and bad influence on the youth.
And what does she think about anti-Semitism on the social network?
Walla!
technology
11/03/2022
Friday, 11 March 2022, 15:10 Updated: 16:35
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Natalie Ziv, spokeswoman for Tiktok Israel (Photo: Liat Mendel)
It is considered as one of the most popular apps in the world, and at the same time it is also absorbing fire from many audiences.
Whether it's parents who are concerned about pornographic content, teenagers who claim that it undermines their self - image or Jews who are harmed by antisemitic videos - Tiktok is a controversial social platform.
It is certainly not a simple challenge to face the allegations against the platform, and the one facing this challenge is Natalie Ziv, the spokesperson for Tiktok.
Ziv (46 years old, divorced and in a +2 relationship) is the head of the communications department of all the growing countries in Europe, including Israel and Nordic countries and countries in Eastern Europe such as Poland, Romania and Hungary.
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Tiktok (Photo: ShutterStock)
"I came to Tiktok in November 2020. At the beginning of my career, I worked at the high-tech company Intel in an administrative position and progressed to the positions of spokesperson and corporate communications at the company," says Natalie.
"From there I came to eBay and was the communications director of eBay and PayPal, and when eBay did a spin-off for PayPal, I progressed to manage the communications of the entire array of emerging countries in the world on eBay. "Tiktok is one of the fastest growing companies in the world and the position intrigued me. I went through eight interviews and was accepted for the position."
In her role, Natalie is responsible for Tiktok's relationship with the media: "I convey the company's messages with the various media. I have PR agencies in several countries and we tell the world about innovations in Tiktok, initiatives and collaborations.
On the other hand, we respond to questions and inquiries from the media about Tiktok. "
What do you like about your job?
"I love that I have the opportunity to learn something new every day. Everything is dynamic and every day looks different from yesterday. There is a touch in all kinds of areas because at the end of the day Tiktok is the mirror of the world. I learn what the geopolitical, cultural and economic situation is in each country. from him".
As a mother of two (19 and 15 years old), the other challenge Natalie faces is the combination of career and motherhood: "Life is a set of choices. You choose where to live, who to marry and how many children to bring into the world, and everything has a price. Wisdom is to be whole With the price you pay. When my kids were little I gave them quality time, I made sure to be there when they needed me. And not miss anything that was important to them. But if for example they wanted me to help them study for the test they knew they had to coordinate with me in the diary. "To plan the schedule for myself six months in advance, and I also teach my children to do it as a tool for life."
How many women work in Tiktok?
"Our policy is not to disclose the amount of employees in the company, but there are a lot of women who work at Tiktok. It is very important to us to equalize opportunities between women and men, but we recruit people according to their abilities and less according to their gender."
According to research firm omnicoreagency, 41% of Tiktok users are young people aged 16-24.
These young people are often exposed to problematic content that appears in the app - pornographic videos, violent videos, dangerous ticking challenges, and videos that can encourage eating disorders, damage viewers' self-image and increase depression and anxiety.
It was only recently reported that a group of several states in the United States are investigating whether ticking is adversely affecting the mental and physical health of young users.
"Our policy is not to disclose the number of employees in the company" (Photo: ShutterStock)
Are you not afraid that your children will be exposed to the problematic content that Tiktok has?
"I'm not afraid. Our company is taking many steps to eradicate this phenomenon and prevent the uploading of problematic content. First, Tiktok is for ages 13 and up. Children under the age of 13 can lie about their age by signing up for Tiktok, but our sophisticated algorithm manages to make them young. "Then they are blocked. In addition, we set by default all accounts from age 13 to age 13 as private, so anyone who wants to track them needs to get approval. We also allow families a family link that links the parent's account to the child's account."
"The parent can not watch the child's videos so there is no invasion of privacy, but he can manage his screen time and set how long the child can watch Tiktok, restrict him from receiving the private messages, and restrict the content the child is exposed to. If there is content the user does not want Watch it, then the algorithm learns it and does not display similar content.It is clear that young people over the age of 17 will not give their phone to parents, but we trust their judgment and will report problematic content.We run a strict filter on all content that violates our community guidelines Using an algorithm and language testers from all over the world, and 98% of the problematic content is blocked even before it is even uploaded to the app. "
Still, despite all these methods, Tiktok has a lot of problematic content.
"True, and there is no place for that. We are a relatively young company and we are not perfect. But we work 24/7 to eradicate this content and the company puts this issue at the top of the list. We are not trying to sweep it under the rug. We have only recently worked with HaMoked National Child Protection Network A panel of parents and psychologists talked about dangerous challenges online. We conducted a study that examined what causes users to face dangerous challenges and found that users do not understand the risk of the challenges at all. In the past month, we have broadcast live broadcasts of women promoting "Body Positive." Among others, model Maayan Keret, who faced anorexia, spoke of thinness as a beauty model and what has changed in the world in recent years, The content creators in Tiktok without filters and makeup.Tiktok also prohibits the advertising of apps that promote a negative relationship with food. "
And what about the anti-Semitism that is in the app?
"When it comes to antisemitic content, we work at the global level and not only in Israel to prevent the spread of antisemitic content. On the last International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we joined the World Jewish Organization and launched a special information center to raise awareness of the issue.
Another argument heard against Tiktok is that it causes its users to become addicted to the app.
It is claimed that Tiktok's algorithm is designed to show users videos they enjoy watching.
The videos are very short and are shown one after the other, and the app provides a surprising viewing experience so that users will never be bored.
"We have no desire to make people addicted. We want people to create quality content that will allow people to discover new worlds,"
Natalie claims .
.
"We live in a world that offers plenty. You can watch hours on TV or play computer games. It is important to manage time properly. I encourage parents to limit their child's screen time. I limit my child's screen time to 3 hours a day and adults can also limit the time. Screen time ".
"We have no desire to make people addicted."
Natalie Ziv (Photo: Yachz)
Do not you think that ticking has made our world a little more superficial and depressing?
"Tiktok's goal is to create content that allows for creativity and joy. We conducted research on users' feelings about Tiktok and 84% of respondents testified that Tiktok makes them feel positive. Tiktok is a place for inspiration and learning. Tiktok encourages the creation of authentic content, and expresses who you are. Really.This authenticity is what Generation Z loves.You can learn through ticking diverse fields like cooking, finance, fashion design, English, Bible and more.
"The population of Tiktok has matured and Tiktok has long been not the dance app it used to be."
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