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In a move to combat misinformation and add context to viral content, TikTok on Wednesday officially launched Footnotes - a new crowdsourced fact-checking system, as per media reports.
Initially rolled out as a pilot in the U.S., the feature allows eligible contributors to write and rate contextual notes on videos, similar to the Community Notes program on X and Meta's own version of the same.
All TikTok users in the U.S. will now be able to view Footnotes that have been rated as helpful and submit their own ratings. Contributors must be over 18, have been on the platform for over at least six months, and maintain a clean record with no recent violations of TikTok's Community Standards.
According to the company, nearly 80,000 U.S. users have qualified to become Footnotes contributors since applications opened in April.
TikTok's Footnotes uses a "bridging algorithm" - a consensus-driven approach that prioritizes notes rated as helpful by people with differing viewpoints. This method is designed to reduce manipulation attempts and ensure more balanced information. The goal, according to TikTok, is to "give the community more context around the content they're seeing."
"Sometimes the person who posted the video is trying to mislead. Other times, they may simply lack complete information. Footnotes helps bridge that gap," said the company in a statement.
TikTok clarified that the Footnotes initiative will build on - not replace - its existing Global Fact-checking program. The platform continues to partner with more than 20 IFCN-accredited organizations working in over 60 languages across 130 markets.
TikTok is the latest in a string of social media platforms introducing community-based moderation tools in response to increasing scrutiny over misinformation. X pioneered the model in 2020 under the name Birdwatch, which later evolved into Community Notes and expanded globally.
Meta followed suit in 2024, discontinuing traditional fact-checking in favour of a similar system amid political pressure and regulatory concerns.
YouTube has also begun experimenting with a similar Notes feature, launched last year, as tech platforms increasingly explore participatory content moderation systems.
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