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C’Niya Sistrunk

Professor Whitener

English 102

10 February 2021

Rhetorical Analysis of “TikTok: Pros, Cons, and the Promise of Youth Empowerment”

I'm sure we all know about the famous app TikTok. Everyone has something different to

say about the app whether it is their favorite app to a bad addiction. Sameer Hinduja’s article on

TikTok states the positives and negatives of TikTok and how teens have been using it for youth

empowerment by speaking on topics like cyberbullying. Sameer Hinduja is the Co-Director of

the Cyberbullying Research Center. He has written many books and articles on the topics of

cyberbullying, sexting, and other teen technology use and misuse to contribute to the website. In

“TikTok: Pros, Cons, and the Promise of Youth Empowerment'' published on Cyberbullying

Research Center in January of 2021, Sameer Hinduja convinces the audience to broaden their

knowledge on TikTok by considering all the effects of the app by appealing to reason, people’s

emotions, and especially his great credibility.

The purpose of the article is to expand people’s knowledge, especially parents, about

TikTok to hopefully create a better perspective of the app. Hinduja wants to emphasize how

TikTok is not as bad as people think. By Hinduja stating his knowledge on the app, it can

broaden parent’s thoughts on the app and maybe even change opinions of TikTok by stating the

pros and cons. Sameer Hinduja wants the audience to realize, “While we often hear about and

focus the most attention on the bad things that occur on or via social media, we should remember

that it is also often being marshaled for positive purposes”.

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Sameer Hinduja makes his whole article valid by him being the Co-Director of the

Cyberbullying Research Center himself. He is a professor as well in the School of Criminology

and Criminal Justice at Florida Atlantic University. He also has received his Ph.D. and M.S. in

Criminal Justice from Michigan State University where he majored in computer crime. He also

got his B.S. in Criminal Justice and minored in legal studies from the University of Central

Florida Honors College. The website even describes his incredible accomplishments,

Dr. Hinduja and Dr. Patchin have written seven books and numerous articles in

professional and academic publications and have presented nationally and internationally

to hundreds of thousands of educators on the topics of cyberbullying, sexting, and other

forms of teen technology use and misuse. Their research has involved data from nearly

20,000 youth regarding their experiences with cyberbullying, offending, and

victimization. Their work has been featured in many national and international news

programs and outlets.

This makes the website and the article very reliable and trustworthy which helps to convince

people, mainly parents, of the argument of the article. Parents would want to listen to what he

has to say about TikTok and trust him because he is credible and well-informed of the topic. This

is how Hinduja appeals to ethos in the article by being such an expert on computer crime and

legal studies with amazing credentials.

Hinduja appeals to logos as well when stating pros and cons about the app. This is another

good thing about the author, he had an open mindset in the article by not just stating pros or only

stating cons he wants people to see both sides. When listing his pros for the app he uses pictures

from the actual app to show some of its good features. For example, he writes, “ TikTok provides

the ability to filter out certain content that might be considered “mature” through a setting called
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“Restricted Mode.” This is available under “Me” (bottom right icon) and then “Digital

Wellbeing.” (Parents, you will have to enable a “Family Pairing” setting (which links your

child’s account to yours) to prevent your kid from changing the security settings you

implement)”. By referencing pictures of the pros of TikTok, he appeals to parents by convincing

them with facts and backs it up with references from the actual app. He also reveals how youth

have been using TikTok in a positive light by applying to reason as well. In his article he writes,

“ As I close, I wanted to focus on something I’m seeing that I love: youth speaking out about

cyberbullying and attempting to shift peer perceptions on what is appropriate, and what is not.

Here are a few videos that I found on TikTok where teens are speaking out (or otherwise

conveying) about the need to be respectful in comments, demonstrating resilience, and trying to

set a tone of kindness for others. I’ve uploaded them to YouTube for ease of experience across

devices”. By doing this he lets parents get the chance to see for themselves the type of content

that can appear on their child’s TikTok app. By appealing to logos the author builds his argument

by explaining reasons that are logical and clear. This was effective because it elevated his writing

and helped engage readers even more.

Hinduja not only attracts readers by logos and ethos, but he also catches parents’ attention

by appealing to their emotions. For example, he writes, “ Parents tell me that they’re concerned

about the fact that many videos feature songs with inappropriate lyrics. Yes, this is jarring when

you watch a video and hear some profanity, and I wouldn’t personally want kids exposed to such

language. However, I do know that many are exposed to this language at school, among friends,

and those songs are readily accessible to them on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, etc. Have a

conversation with your kid about your expectations for lyrical content in their TikToks and have

consequences in place if they violate your trust”. He wants to relate to parents to explain how he
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knows how they are feeling while also being honest with how the world is. Appealing to parents'

emotions made his argument even stronger because he emotionally connects with them and

influences them to not have such a fixed mindset.

Overall, Hinduja makes a valid argument about how all apps have pros and cons like

TikTok does and parents try to rule out the app just because of lack of understanding. But he

reveals in this article that there are also benefits to social media apps especially TikTok like

cyberbullying prevention which is what he brings to light. Hinduja’s article is very effective

because he successfully uses all of the rhetorical appeals logos, pathos, and ethos wisely to help

make his case. This made his article effective in helping change people's opinions on the app and

expanding their knowledge on it. The source I choose is important because TikTok is such a

popular app in this day and age and concerned parents can have a better understanding of this

trending app through this article.

Works Cited
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Hinduja, Sameer. “TikTok: Pros, Cons, and the Promise of Youth Empowerment.”
Cyberbullying Research Center, cyberbullying.org/TikTok-pros-cons-youth-empowerment.

“About Us.” Cyberbullying Research Center, cyberbullying.org/about-us.