My generation had a chance of escaping the Murdoch grip. Now Rupert’s set to rule TikTok

When I think back to the recent federal election, one of the main images that’s ingrained in my mind is an Instagram reel titled “But why are you afraid to go to Australia?” It starts by showing a blank map of Australia, which is then rapidly dotted with tiny emojis of lizards, jellyfish, octopuses, sharks and spiders and suddenly, dozens of images of Peter Dutton’s head.

Since it was posted by the Australian Labor Party in March, it has received over 85,000 views. This isn’t surprising – it’s hilarious and was effective enough to stay in my mind for six months.

That says a lot about the role that social media played in this year’s election. Young people shared political content with one another in a way they hadn’t before; political parties, who have been attempting to get through to voters on social media for years, adopted a new approach. Instead of posting videos that summarised their policies, most of them started “shitposting” – creating content that mocked other parties or lightheartedly made fun of their own candidates.

This new form of engagement meant that thousands of young people who had never been exposed to politics before were suddenly surrounded by it. Even my most uninterested friends talked about candidates whose videos had popped up as recommended content on their For You page.

The same thing has happened in the US, and it’s clear that the role of social media in politics will only grow in coming years – which is one of the reasons that Rupert Murdoch’s plan to become one of TikTok’s new US owners is so concerning.

Of all the billionaires who could have acquired a stake in TikTok, Murdoch has what is probably the least transparent and most extreme political agenda. It’s not hard to guess what kind of political content will be amplified, and what will be censored, on a platform he owns.

TikTok is already known for creating political echo-chambers; its algorithm pushes users towards content that aligns with their values. And, on top of this, research has shown that right-wing platforms perform better in social media’s “attention economy”. The rise in populism and extremism among young people has been attributed to these factors; Murdoch’s influence is likely to make this far worse. That it will happen on the platform where almost half of all young people get their political information is even more concerning.

It’s not just political information that is funnelled through social media – it’s also truth. Multiple friends of mine have fallen down bizarre conspiracy theory rabbit holes, believing rumours about underground Hollywood tunnels or Beyonce being a murderer. Even more have been susceptible to subtler, more insidious disinformation such as strange health trends, diets and dangerous DIY skincare regimens.

Despite everything we’re taught about critical thinking, to some extent, most of us believe what we see. No one person, let alone someone so embroiled in a history of misinformation and conspiracy, should be able to control the way that young people perceive the world, which is effectively what controlling TikTok equates to.

Through News Corp, Murdoch has manipulated the minds of Australians, Americans and UK residents for decades. Former prime minister Kevin Rudd once referred to him as “an arrogant cancer on our democracy”. While my generation stood a chance of being perhaps the first to escape the stronghold of his media empire, he’s now found another way to reach us, and one that’s much harder to escape.

Unlike a newspaper or subscription TV, social media isn’t seen as inherently biased – there isn’t one platform that the left uses, and one for the right. The danger is that TikTok will creep to one side of politics without us noticing, and the power that Rupert Murdoch has wielded over the older generations is now being passed down to his son Lachlan for him to hold over my generation.

Many young people are aware of what News Corp is; Fox News and Tucker Carlson are perceived by most people my age as either a joke or a significant danger. But few among my generation would be willing to boycott TikTok because of this – the platform is a fundamental part of our world. By taking control of the app, the Murdochs are taking control of the next generation’s minds, and the danger of that is beyond comprehension.

Saria Ratnam is a University of Melbourne arts student.