TikTok comes with a new tab for STEM videos

TikTok likes to highlight topics like math, engineering, science and technology. So it has created a new tab only for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics). An important choice because it will be placed next to ‘Next’ and ‘For You’, which are the most frequently used buttons on TikTok.

TikTok

At the very least, hopefully this will come to the Netherlands and not just be an option for the US (the US, in fact, wants to ban TikTok). It has moderators who decide whether a video meets that, and whether it’s aimed at English-language videos, which TikTok doesn’t consider belonging to the Dutch version.

We hope not. We hope it will come in our country, because it is very important for the youth (and TikTok has not reached it like anyone else) to come in contact with such topics at an early age. Especially young women, because the Netherlands has 16 percent women in technology, so we can use a lot of women in IT courses. In other European countries, it seems somewhat normal for women to choose careers in science, mathematics and technology.

STEM Videos

It’s not true that every video about technology is suddenly in that feed, as collaboration with STEM organizations has been requested to determine if a video is under that tab. For example, the intent of videos to pass must be true. What’s great about this new feed is that when you ‘lock-up’ yourself into an algorithm with animal videos, you can still travel to another subject. TikTok seems to have already tested this extensively, for example with fashion feeds and more.

It can definitely add value. For example, in light of the election, TikTok could have created a tab with only videos about politics. While moderation is also very essential there, it could have sought cooperation with the government, like Snapchat, so that it could invest some money in paying moderators (TikTok is certainly flush with money, but it doesn’t need to be).

Personalization on TikTok

Other topics can also be given a separate tab, such as King’s Day or a particular TV show that everyone is talking about at the time. Especially if you choose what that third tab is going to be (and maybe add a fourth and fifth one too), then you can occasionally break out of that algorithm and watch videos of a different caliber.

In the United States, the feed is also not yet live: it will continue to be in the coming weeks. We asked TikTok for an answer. What it says: “Right now, we’re focused on bringing STEM feed to people in the US, and we look forward to the TikTok community embracing this new source of content enhancement.” So stay tuned.