TikTok users divided over new comment dislike button test

TikTok has revealed that it is testing a new dislike button to help users “identify comments they believe to be irrelevant or inappropriate,” but not everyone is a fan of the idea.

ByteDance-owned app TikTok is constantly evolving, and new features are being added on a regular basis that aim to improve the overall user experience, as well as help people make a wide range of content using a host of different tools.

However, if you’ve spent any amount of time on the app you’ll know that while there is plenty of great content and largely positive communities on TikTok, it can also be a hugely toxic place — this is especially true for comment sections.

In a blog post on April 13, TikTok revealed that in an attempt to foster authentic engagement in comments, they are testing a feature which will, “let individuals identify comments they believe to be irrelevant or inappropriate.”

They added that: “To avoid creating ill-feeling between community members or demoralize creators, only the person who registered a dislike on a comment will be able to see that they have done so.”

Some people have reported that they’ve already been given access to the feature, which appears in the form of a thumbs-down symbol, however, the community is split on whether it is a good thing.

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“I’m sorry you can DISLIKE comments now?” one user wrote in the caption of their video from March. “TikTok has the most negative and aggressive users, and y’all thought it was a good idea to give them a dislike button?”

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However, one commenter disagreed, stating that “it helps way more than it hurts – unnecessarily mean, trolling, hateful, and misinformed comments can be disliked and push further down the feed.”

Others even proposed that there’s “no need” for the feature, given that the number of dislikes is hidden, although that doesn’t seem to be the feature’s primary purpose.

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Only time will tell whether the feature is a success, as it is rolled out to more users across the globe.

In February, some TikTok users weren’t happy when the app revealed it was bringing back their ‘profile views’ feature that allows you to see who’s looking at your profile, but this time around it’s on an opt-in basis.