TikTok Allows All User To Downvote Comments – The Stats To Be Available To The Platform’s Moderation Team Only

Emmett Whitfield

05 Oct 2022

TikTok Allows All User To Downvote Comments – The Stats To Be Available To The Platform’s Moderation Team Only

TikTok has debuted a long-anticipated and much-needed feature – registered visitors to the platform now have the ability to downvote each other’s comments. The social media app dedicated to sharing short-form videos began testing the new option in April 2022; now, TikTok decided it was time to roll it out to users globally.

The new thumbs-down icon shows up on the right side of the screen, next to the heart-shaped “Like” button, and offers all users a handy way to quickly flag a response that they find inappropriate. The comment downvote feature has a reversible effect, meaning that clicking on it again will undo the downvoting. The novel functionality should make it easier for the platform to identify destructive behaviors among its users and take timely action. TikTok has not yet elaborated on what exactly those actions can be.

Unlike the number of likes, the number of disapproving reactions will not be public knowledge to avoid fostering ill feelings among members of the TikTok community. Instead, only the platform’s moderation team will have access to such statistics, which makes it a valuable back-end moderation instrument rather than an emotional response channel. The option to report a comment violating TikTok’s rules and policies has been preserved for direct communication with the platform administration.

The ability to vote against inappropriate content has long been available on Reddit, where it is a publicly visible response element helping the platform highlight the most relevant trends and conversations. Twitter and Facebook have been considering implementing the downvote functionality in a manner TikTok has just done it.

What do you think of TikTok’s new dislike feature? Will it be helpful? Tell us what you think in the comments section.

Follow: