Users on TikTok searching for “WGA” are met with a screen claiming that the phrase “may be associated with behavior or content that violates our guidelines.” No videos return. Users are also unable to search for the “WGA” hashtag.

TikTok has also blocked the search term “WGA strike.”

Additionally, it appears that TikTok is blocking results from any simple search that includes “WGA” in the search term. Including “WGA” in addition to another word — like “WGA support” or “WGA strong” — blocks results.

Update (9/11/23): A TikTok spokesperson told Media Matters that “WGA has been inadvertently blocked as part of the platforms’ protections against QAnon conspiracy theories.” (WWG1WGA is a common QAnon phrase.) The spokesperson added that searches for “Writers Guild of America” and “Writers Guild of America Strike” were not impacted. Searches for “WGA” and related terms now appear to function normally.

(Thanks mike591, SCB, crowsby, and others for putting in the comments)

  • captainlezbian@lemmy.worldEnglish
    9·
    1 year ago

    Because we have a cultic milieu and it’s an extremely syncretic conspiracy theory. Never quite got past the satanic panic? Q is fighting the Satanists who made rent too damn high. Think aliens control the government? They’re working with the Satanists but they’re on the beat of ensuring your kids disagree with you after going to college. Aware that the rich are the enemy? Trump is secretly at war with the elites. Just a massive fucking bigot? Who do you think the elites are? No seriously you can copy and paste the group you hate in there, it could be anyone that isn’t a majority, they could be redheads for all Q cares.

    Qanon has absorbed everything from the new world order (alien edition, but also the other ones too) to flat earth to satanic panic to NESARA to the fucking protocols of the elders of Zion and cultural Bolshevism (though they call it cultural Marxism but still blame Jews). These are all things that used to get you laughed out of a room if not beaten up but now there’s an audience who will “yes and” the most deluded bullshit you can imagine.

    • SCB@lemmy.worldEnglish
      5·
      1 year ago

      Yeah this is a great point. I’d seen all the data points there but didn’t really put together that’s it’s become this sort of meta-conspiracy that is almost infinitely malleable.

      • captainlezbian@lemmy.worldEnglish
        51·
        1 year ago

        If it makes you feel any worse it’s not the first conspiracy theory to do that. Cultural Bolshevism fulfilled a similar role in the 1930s. It incorporated fears of Jews, Jesuits, Freemasons, homosexuals, communists… and yeah it went exactly how 1930s Europe went.

        It’s important to remember, who and what only matters a bit. They aren’t attached to the fact that it’s aliens, they’re attached to the fact that it’s scary and unknown others who don’t think like them and they have to be responsible for everything getting worse. It’s why antisemitism is skyrocketing at the moment. Who that other is is absolutely irrelevant. Hate can be channeled where it needs gone.

      • captainlezbian@lemmy.worldEnglish
        21·
        1 year ago

        But it doesn’t have to be. It’s eternally in power flux until people start breaking out of it. She holds power now but remember what happened when trump said to get vaccinated. They’ll kill their heroes easily.