Other parties active on the platform, such as VVD and Groenlinks, are adhering to the ban. Since the Forum for Democracy is the only party that appears to be violating the advertising ban for the time being, an uneven playing field is created on TikTok during the campaign period. With a few thousand euros you can reach more than a million voters.
On the eve of the provincial elections, the medium offers access to more than three million voters, especially young people. Earlier this year, the app had 850,000 users in the 20-24 age group.
Lack of transparency TikTok
Forum for Democracy also seems to have this target group in mind in the ads they place. The party has paid at least twice this week, just before the election, to promote content on the platform. These are videos in which Baudet collaborates with a rapper through his personal account to create a piece of music. (“Not politically correct / I say what I want like Baudet / A government under Rutte / I never trusted them”). The videos together have more than two million views on the platform. Baudet (or other politicians) may have placed more ads – TikTok doesn’t disclose.
Another announcement, featuring a direct vote call from Thierry Baudet, came online via an account that doesn’t appear to be directly linked to the Forum. This video has reached 1.6 million views.
Baudet circumvented advertising bans for politicians with apparent ease
Both videos are prohibited by the TikTok terms of use. Not only is politically colored advertising not allowed, the platform prohibits politicians from advertising on the medium altogether. “Access to advertising features is automatically disabled,” writes TikTok “for accounts of politicians and political parties.” In an earlier conversation with BNR, Theo Berthram, TikTok’s chief lobbyist in Europe, said that this rule was hardly violated: “We don’t allow political ads, nobody tries to run political ads.”
It’s unclear how Baudet managed to get around this ban, but TikTok can only impose these restrictions on “verified” political accounts, who have personally made themselves known to the party through proof of identification. Using verified accounts offers some protection against misinformation, but many Dutch politicians choose not to be verified because TikTok also limits creative options for these types of accounts.
TikTok blocks live, advertising opportunities
The ease with which Baudet seems to get around the rules raises questions about TikTok’s ability to moderate. After BNR showed earlier this month that it was possible to spread disinformation and calls for political violence via TikTok ads, the company vowed to invest more in it.
TikTok has already placed restrictions on Baudet. In a video that appeared online on Monday, the party leader is upset about the ban on live videos he allegedly received from TikTok. Baudet keeps an eye on the phone. The screen reads “Permanent Block for violating Community Guidelines.” TikTok informs BNR that politicians are never allowed to go live on the medium and has therefore revoked the privileges for this on the account.
TikTok says in a response that it has also blocked advertising opportunities for Baudet. “Ads should never have been placed from this account. The ads themselves were also not allowed,” a spokesperson told BNR.
“Tiktok first and foremost entertainment platform”
TikTok itself writes that it bans political advertising because it is “first and foremost an entertainment platform.” Due to this blanket ban, TikTok also escapes the EU’s transparency obligations regarding political ads.
The originally Chinese company behind TikTok, ByteDance, has been the subject of political controversy in recent months. The company was caught spying on journalists through the app and using a “keylogger” that may have silently recorded personal information such as passwords. D66, ChristenUnie and the Party for the Animals have therefore previously called on political parties not to use the app during election campaign periods. D66 also supports banning the app on government employees’ phones.
The Forum for Democracy did not want to answer the BNR’s questions.