About

Design Description

“All technology reflects the society that produces it, including its power structures and prejudices." ——《Glitch Feminism: A Manifesto》Legacy Russell

Imagine scrolling through your favorite app. You think you’re exploring the world, but in reality, you’re trapped in a bubble, seeing only what the algorithm thinks you want. What if the world isn’t as narrow as your feed suggests?

Short Video Platforms

  • Younger user base with high engagement levels.
  • Rapid content dissemination and short trend cycles.
  • Strong societal influence through algorithm-driven ecosystems.

    • Echo Chambers

  • Originally defined by political biases, now applied to ambiguous topics like beauty standards.
  • Difficult to quantify in abstract contexts.
  • Amplifies misinformation, polarizes communities, and suppresses alternative views.

    • Emotional Homogenization

  • Emotional responses on platforms tend to be polarized and uniform.
  • Intensifies group extremism and reduces exposure to diverse emotions.
  • Adversely affects adolescent mental health by fostering anxiety and conformity.

    • Parallel Platformization

  • Douyin exhibits higher content homogeneity and stronger echo chamber effects.
  • TikTok’s global cultural diversity reduces echo chamber formation.
  • Highlights cultural differences in algorithmic dynamics and user interactions.
    • Basic Data Secondary Data
    Glitch in Beauty Standards
    Glitch in Gender Expression
    Glitch in Activism
    Glitch in Cultural Aesthetics
    Glitch in ...

    Methodology

    Same Methods, Different Topics

    The methodology begins with video scraping and data cleaning to collect and refine content from Douyin and TikTok, ensuring relevant datasets. Keyword analysis identifies themes, while comment scraping explores engagement dynamics through user data.

    Next, an echo chamber network is constructed to analyze selective exposure and homophily. A case study validates the findings, and insights inform applications to break echo chambers, fostering diversity and inclusive interactions on platforms.

    Dancer
    Dancer

    In an era dominated by short videos, platforms like Douyin and TikTok reveal differing echo chamber effects shaped by selective exposure and homophily. My project, “Are We Living in Spectrum? – Glitch in Diversity,” examines how ambiguous topics like beauty standards spread within these chambers, exposing cultural and algorithmic biases. By comparing Douyin’s localized norms that foster homogeneity with TikTok’s global user base that disrupts polarization, I explore how algorithms influence aesthetic standards and marginalize diversity. Using social network analysis and computational tools, this research challenges algorithmic conformity, advocating for more inclusive digital ecosystems.

    Dancer

    Insight

    Analytical Conclusions

    Keywords: Douyin and TikTok share similar primary keywords, but Douyin’s network shows higher link density, reflecting more interconnected themes. Douyin emphasizes localized aesthetics like "whitening," while TikTok displays broader, global interests.

    Emotional Homogenization: Both platforms have similar emotional homogeneity, but TikTok skews more positive, driven by uplifting content, while Douyin maintains a neutral tone focused on daily life.

    Echo Chambers: TikTok’s diverse user base leads to weaker echo chambers and more cross-cluster interactions. Douyin’s denser clusters amplify biases, reflecting stronger echo chamber effects.

      Bias:
    • IP and Cultural Context Limitations: Without accurate IP location, it’s difficult to contextualize user backgrounds. Even filtering for English content doesn’t guarantee an understanding of cultural context, especially on platforms like TikTok with diverse user bases.
    • Recent Posting Dates: If posts are predominantly recent, it restricts the ability to observe long-term trends, making it harder to track historical shifts in user behavior and platform dynamics over time.
    • Recommendation Bias Based on Account Preferences: Platform algorithms adjust recommendations based on the account’s prior interactions, which may lead to an echo chamber effect.

    Conclusion: Douyin exhibits greater content homogeneity and echo chamber effects, while TikTok fosters diversity and positivity, highlighting cultural and platform design differences.

    Future Work

    Applications

    We can’t dismantle echo chambers overnight, but we can start by recognizing their existence. By diversifying perspectives, we can build healthier, more informed digital spaces. So, are you ready to live in the spectrum?

    Company
    Mustache
     Company
    Goat
     Company
    Justice

    Reference

    Precedents and Bibliography

    Precedent

    They Rule

    Source: Visit the Project

    They Rule is an interactive visualization project that maps connections among corporate board members in major U.S. companies, revealing networks of power and influence. This project is relevant to my research as it demonstrates how relationships can create homogeneity within systems—whether corporate or digital. By highlighting hidden structures, They Rule parallels my investigation into how algorithms on platforms like TikTok and Douyin amplify aesthetic norms and echo chambers. My project extends this concept by exploring cultural and visual conformity in digital spaces while proposing an alternative: more inclusive algorithmic designs.

    They Rule Project Image
    The Urban History of an Algorithm

    Source: Read the Article

    This article traces the concept of homophily—“birds of a feather flock together”—and its historical role in shaping cities and digital networks. It critiques how algorithms reinforce societal segregation and echo chambers, both physically in urban planning and virtually in digital platforms. This aligns directly with my project’s focus on TikTok and Douyin, where homophily fosters localized norms and beauty standards.

    Homophily Project Image

    Annotated Bibliography

    Glitch Feminism: A Manifesto

    Source: Legacy Russell, 2020
    Read the Book

    Russell’s work reimagines the glitch as a subversive tool to challenge societal and digital norms. This book provides a theoretical foundation for understanding how marginalized identities disrupt algorithmic conformity, aligning with my project’s focus on challenging aesthetic biases on short-video platforms.

    It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens

    Source: danah boyd, 2014
    Read the Book

    boyd explores how teens navigate identity, privacy, and audience dynamics in social media. This analysis of homophily and selective exposure offers valuable insights for understanding how localized norms propagate within Douyin and TikTok’s echo chambers.

    Social Media Deepens Partisan Divides, but Not Always

    Source: The New York Times, 2014
    Read the Article

    This article discusses how social media reinforces divisions while occasionally fostering diverse interactions. It is relevant as it underscores the nuanced impact of algorithms on user behavior, informing my exploration of homogeneity and diversity in digital echo chambers.

    Echo Chamber Effects of Public Opinion Propagation in Social Networks

    Source: Gao, Y., Sun, Y., Liu, F., Gao, L., & Jin, M. (2022)
    Read the Article

    This study examines how public opinion spreads and intensifies within echo chambers. It contributes to my project by offering a structural understanding of information flow, particularly in localized digital environments like Douyin.

    The Impact of #Beauty and #Self-Compassion TikTok Videos

    Source: Veya Seekis, Richelle Kennedy, Body Image, Volume 45, 2023, Pages 117-125
    Read the Article

    This study explores how TikTok content focusing on beauty and self-compassion affects young women’s appearance shame, anxiety, and comparison processes. It is highly relevant to my project as it highlights the psychological impact of beauty standards perpetuated on TikTok, reinforcing the need to critique algorithmic biases shaping aesthetic norms.