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I’m a creator. Here’s why I deleted TikTok.
This past weekend, I posted a 15-second video to TikTok that became — for me — quite popular and hit over 10,000 views. I experienced the typical adrenaline rush and thrill at the attention. But the more I thought about it, the more hollow it all felt. The video didn’t come from any creative inspiration. It wasn’t meaningful content. It wasn’t even a random fluke driven by TikTok’s algorithms. It was, quite simply, an attempt to follow the zeitgeist and carve out an audience. And while it gave me a fleeting sense of validation, it didn’t align with my values or passions as a creator. I took a day or so to think about it. And then, I deleted my TikTok account. It’s not a huge loss — I had barely any followers there, and I certainly wasn’t an influencer, micro, macro or otherwise.
It had simply become clear that TikTok isn’t who I want to be as a writer or a creator. It isn’t even remotely what I want to be as a consumer.
In many ways, TikTok represents the apex of socially networked platforms designed explicitly to command human attention and hijack free will. No other app has weaponised the science of persuasion and vulnerable aspects of human psychology so effectively. TikTok’s format pushes creators and viewers toward short, snackable content meant more for diversion than contemplation. Spending time there pulled me away from engaging deeply…
