I’ve been surfing TikTok coming into 3 years. I haven’t posted content in nearly two years but I do heavily consume. I read an article from CMI about digital content fatigue, talking about how users are tired of ‘low value content’ but that is not how I would define content fatigue and I want to put a spin on the narrative.
I have experienced exhaustion with myself watching thousands of Tiktok’s but not in the way the articles define fatigue. My FYP is pretty well curated and the creators I follow deliver some really good high value content. The fatigue come in two forms for me:
- The knowledge consumption. I believe I should know things and deeply care about matters and causes.
- The juxtaposes of the world. This ends up evoking feelings of sadness hopelessness and melancholy.
When I consume this in 15-60 second intervals, I feel exhausted. Tiktok is apparently launching a longer form content time. I think they’re aware of what’s happening. Could this be the answer? If this is the answer, then YouTube is ultimately the best platform because they possess stronger purpose and uses with their creative and engaging content.
Even though I am a massive TikTok fan, I can’t help but see YouTube continuing to dominate as the top video media platform. I think it’s because of its focus on high-quality content and user experience. The content length options are really good. In contrast, TikTok’s content can sometimes feel repetitive with its trends and challenges. While this can be entertaining in small doses, it can get old quickly and could leave users feeling unfulfilled.
So, if you’re feeling burnt out on short form content. Take a break and step away from the platforms for a while, or use YouTube and focus on a specific topic of interest and let the platform lead you down its rabbit hole. These platforms are all time vortex’s that take more away than we realize.