Chinese video-sharing social networking service Tiktok has followed through with its pledge to support frontline workers during the coronavirus pandemic and has donated £5 million to a nursing fund based in the U.K.
According to a report by BBC News, the Royal College of Nursing Foundation, which is the world’s largest nursing union and professional body, was given the huge sum of donation by Tiktok to help healthcare workers battling on the frontlines during the coronavirus pandemic.
TikTok informs that they wish to show support to the frontline workers, nurses, midwives, paramedics, physiotherapists, cleaners, and porters amid the global crisis. The said donation will be used as an emergency fund to cover the worker’s practical and psychological requirements, and for amping up medical equipment.
Brilliant that @TikTok_UK is supporting @RCNFoundation which brings so much support to communities across the country. https://t.co/oeAhZpgBgC
— Matt Hancock (@MattHancock) April 17, 2020
Biggest coronavirus relief made by a social media company
BBC adds that to date, the said donation is the biggest made to a British organization involved in resolving the coronavirus crisis.
It is discovered that the said donation is not the full amount being let go by the said company as it makes only a part of a wider £257 million fund arranged and to be distributed globally as a relief.
Reportedly, 40% of this wider worldwide fund comes in the form of ad credits to be distributed amongst small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), local authorities, and health organizations worldwide.
🚨Exclusive from me today 🚨 TikTok are donating £5m to the Royal College of Nursing Foundation as part of its global pledge to tackle coronavirus – biggest single donation yet to a British org at the frontline of pandemic from a social media company. https://t.co/IxZmWMK7Dz
— Sophia Smith Galer (@sophiasgaler) April 17, 2020
Donating in the spirit of solidarity and reciprocity
Beijing-based company and owner of TikTok, ByteDance, also informs that the decision to make the said donation did not arrive overnight; instead, it was well-thought.
The executives of the said company expressed their gratitude to health workers not only for their noble work but their direct contribution to TikTok’s influence online. It can be noted that videos were made by some staff from the National Health Service (NHS) and other health organizations recently – seeing a 5,000% increase in video uploads in only a month.
To quantify this, the app acquaints that the total number of videos made by the said staff and healthcare workers have breached the 330 million mark. With that, the app only finds it proper to go out of its way to follow through with the decision of giving reciprocal support to its avid users.
Staff morale has been pretty rubbish lately with Covid19 causing doom & gloom throughout the trust. Brightening up the ward spirit with a team tiktok! ❤💙 #NHS #AMU #coronavirus @GMB pic.twitter.com/UPSuNbZmCV
— ʟc 🕳🐇 (@justLCx) April 11, 2020
Skeptical about TikTok’s agenda behind donation
Some letters online have expressed criticism about this move by TikTok. It is alleged that the said app followed after the footsteps of other social media platforms, which also provided and donated relief during this pandemic, and that it is only afraid of being overshadowed by its competitors.
Despite this, the app reacts wholesomely and chooses to be silent about the allegation.
Tech giants to control the spread of fake news
In response to conspiracy theories linking 5G networks as being the cause of the pandemic, U.S. politicians directed an order to social media companies to control and address the spread of such manipulative news.
TikTok confirms, along with Facebook and others, that it will oblige.
Feature image used courtesy of The Economic Times/YouTube Screenshot