TikTok Needs a Region Filter, and Here’s Why...

For the past month or so, my TikTok For You Page (FYP) has been an absolute joy. Following the brief but impactful U.S. ban on TikTok—which lasted around 12 hours—the algorithm seemed to shift in a way that completely transformed my experience. For the first time in years, my feed was flooded with positivity, creativity, self-improvement content, and an all-round pleasant atmosphere. European and Commonwealth creators took centre stage, and the difference was striking. Gone were the endless rants and repetitive negativity, replaced by refreshing perspectives and genuine engagement.
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However, as of yesterday, I noticed a change. American creators have started creeping back onto my feed, and with them, the all-too-familiar wave of moaning, whining, and general dissatisfaction. My FYP is once again filled with complaints about every other country, grievances about life in general, and the same tired narratives being rehashed by different faces. It’s as if TikTok has reset itself back to the way it was before the U.S. ban—an endless cycle of negativity and performative outrage.

This shift has made me realise just how much TikTok needs a feature that allows users to select which regions they want to see content from. The current algorithm simply doesn’t work in a way that fosters a diverse and enjoyable experience. It prioritises engagement, which means that when Americans complain about something, they receive hundreds of thousands of views and comments from fellow Americans agreeing with them. This signals to TikTok that the content is popular and should be pushed globally. The result? Users outside of the U.S. are inundated with repetitive, unoriginal content that contributes nothing of value.

Social media is supposed to be fun, light-hearted, and engaging. But how can you engage with content that is so painfully uneducated and derivative? It’s the same complaints, the same grievances, the same tired discourse, recycled over and over again with a different face behind the camera. It’s exhausting. The U.S. TikTok sphere seems to thrive on negativity, and it’s suffocating any attempt to create an enjoyable online space.

At this point, the U.S. really needs to lighten up. Whining isn’t content. I repeat: whining isn’t content.