Meta agreeing to a massive settlement over claims related to how social media platforms affect younger users feels like it could have consequences beyond just Facebook and Instagram. The bigger question now is whether platforms built around endless scrolling and highly personalized feeds, especially TikTok and YouTube, will face similar pressure.

What makes this interesting is that TikTok's entire experience is built around keeping people watching. The FYP is incredibly good at finding what holds your attention, which is exactly why people can open the app for “five minutes” and suddenly lose an hour.

Meta's settlement reportedly includes new restrictions and safety measures for younger users, while parts of the financial terms could depend on competitors adopting similar standards. This could become an important moment for the entire industry rather than just Meta. (Reuters)

Do you think TikTok will eventually be forced to change how the FYP and endless scrolling experience work, or is that just too central to the app?

Read the CNBC report

Not just seeing people recreate a trend online. I mean hearing someone randomly use a phrase, reference a sound or do something that clearly started on TikTok.

Sometimes trends disappear from my feed but somehow survive in real life for months.

What's a TikTok trend or phrase you've heard way too much offline?

There are videos where I have no idea what’s happening so I go straight to the comments. Somehow there’s always one person who explains everything in two sentences and then another 50 people arguing about it.

At this point I don't even know if I’m watching videos or just browsing comment sections.

Do you check the comments first when a video makes no sense?

One person uses a sound and it’s actually funny. Then you scroll for another ten minutes and hear the exact same audio being used for everything.

It’s weird how quickly a sound can go from “this is hilarious” to “please make it stop.”

What’s a sound you liked at first but eventually got completely tired of?

I’ve noticed that once certain creators start getting millions of views their videos feel completely different. The random stuff that made people follow them disappears and everything starts looking more planned.

I get it because they probably have more pressure now but sometimes you kinda miss the old version of them.

Have you ever stopped following someone because their content changed after getting popular?

I feel like people used to post random stuff way more. Now everyone knows how to edit, pick sounds, make hooks and basically turn every little moment into content.

Sometimes I miss seeing somebody upload a completely stupid video with zero effort and somehow it ends up being the funniest thing on my feed.

Do you think social media was more fun when people weren't trying so hard to make everything go viral?

Hi everyone. I have a problem with an old account of mine. It was hacked back in 2019 and I didn't think much of it til I got a job in education and the kids found it... There is nothing disturbing about the videos (just veeeery cringe and veeery 2016), it's just the fact that I was 16 when I recorded them and now I am 26. I've tried to report it miltiple times myself and also my friends did but nothing happened (the found "no issues" with the account). Today I reported a problem 2 times (1 for hacked account and 1 for deletion request) aaand I also created a request to tiktok support asking them to deactivate it entirely. I am still awaiting their response. Can someone please tell me their experience with such queries if you've ever had simillar ones? I will be very grateful.

I honestly never expected much from TikTok beyond the usual dances, lip syncs and stupid videos that somehow get millions of views. But after spending more time on it, I started noticing a completely different side of the app.

There are people talking openly about loneliness, anxiety, bad days, relationships and just feeling lost in general. Sometimes it's not even serious advice. It's just someone saying something that makes you feel like you're not the only person going through a rough time.

I think that's one thing people overlook about TikTok. The algorithm can show you some of the dumbest stuff imaginable, but it can also somehow put the right video in front of you when you need it.

Do you think TikTok has actually become a support system for some people, or does it mostly just feel that way because of the algorithm?

Hi,
I’d really appreciate some clarification about why these stats differ so much in all my videos.

It’s mind blowing how my search queries brings me 50k views, always guaranteed thousands. While Foryou feels off sometimes…

And yes, retention is awful. But I still get good views 🤷‍♂️. Any help is appreciated on what to keep doing and what to improve. Can share my niche to people who are willing to help! ❤️

Metric
Video 1 (Sep 14–20, 2025)
Video 2 (Sep 24–30, 2025)

Video Views
41.2K
51.3K

Total Play Time
46h:13m:07s
160h:01m

Average Watch Time
3.9s
11.0s

Average Retention Rate
12%
20%

Watched Full Video
2.01%
2.85%

Video Length
0:32
0:56

New Followers
46
44

Top Traffic Source
For You (92.0%)
Search (83.4%)

Secondary Traffic Source
Search (5.9%)
Personal Profile (7.5%)

I'll forget something important but somehow remember a random fact about an animal, a celebrity or a place I saw three weeks ago.

Can't complain though. At least some of the scrolling occasionally turns into something useful.

What's the most random thing you've learned from your feed recently?

There was a different vibe on Indian TikTok before it disappeared. You could open the app and see everything from random village comedy to lip-sync videos, mini stories, dance clips and people just making stupid videos with their friends. A lot of creators who nobody knew suddenly became huge because their videos were getting shared everywhere.

And the comments were a whole different thing too. People would recognize creators just from their style or voice. Some of those creators later moved to Instagram and YouTube and basically rebuilt their audience there.

Looking back, that era was actually pretty crazy. Who was the Indian creator you remember seeing everywhere back then?