By Mallory Paruszeweski, Senior Reporter
Northwestern student-athlete Sofia McElroy is an influencer in training. She downloaded TikTok when the pandemic began in 2020, and she has already had multiple videos go viral.
McElroy now uses her account to promote brands of products she uses in her everyday life, and as a member of the women’s golf team, she hopes to make more educational videos about the sport. She is one of the countless young people who are hoping to persuade others on TikTok – and get name recognition in the process.
“I want to be famous, like really bad,” McElroy said.
Getting established as an influencer on TikTok isn’t easy, McElroy said. The platform’s algorithms don’t always promote a person’s content in the same way.
“First starting TikTok is embarrassing because of the minimal views and thought of being judged,” McElroy said.
Northwestern student and TikTok user Bradey Bejarano, who has 14,000 followers, focused on weight-lifting or working on trucks in his videos. Bejarano said he used TikTok more when he was in high school because he had more time to be on his phone. Now that he is playing collegiate baseball and attending college classes, he doesn’t post anymore.
Bejarano got started on the app because his friend encouraged him to get an account.
“My goal was to gain as many followers so I can be cool,” Bejarano said.
When he is traveling for baseball, he will get on Instagram Reels instead of TikTok now because he finds it more interesting, he said.
“I have to watch the videos my girlfriend sends me because she will ask questions,” Bejarano said. “I’ll be in trouble if I don’t.”
Maddie Masch and Justin Dunlap said they, too, hope to be influencers.
Masch has 70,000 followers. She said she loves that TikTok can cheer her up and make her laugh.
Masch got on the app during 2019 not by making videos, but by making sounds and music for other people to use. One of her sounds got highly popular, and then her account grew overnight.
Masch said she has to post her content at the right time of the day, give it a trending sound and base it on an original idea. Making videos constantly requires a lot of screen time, so she is on her phone a lot, she said.
“It’s become a part of my daily routine,” Masch said.
Dunlap, a self-described “Star Wars” fan, has gained 357,000 followers stemming from his “Star Wars” or anime videos. Dunlap, a member of the Northwestern baseball team, said he struggles with finding inspiration and the time to post consistently.
“Sometimes, I feel like the stuff isn’t up to par with the content I expect from myself, and it makes me hesitant to make anything at all,” Dunlap said.
In Dunlap’s mind, being an influencer means teaching people about “Star Wars” and giving the franchise’s lovers something to watch and enjoy. However, not all people are fans of what he does.
“I always remind myself that, for everyone that judges me, a lot more people love what I make,” Dunlap said.
In recent years, TikTok has become a platform for many people to share their personal lives through a variety of singing, dancing and talking videos.
However, the app comes with its share of problems. The app is known as a place where human trafficking has occurred. Many children on TikTok communicate with other TikTok users, not knowing whether the person really is who he or she claims to be.
Self-esteem problems can also result from use of the app, some health authories say.
“Girls on TikTok think that they need to post their bodies to get noticed,” McElroy said. “[It is] very dangerous.”
Reporting from CNN and other national media outlets has revealed that TikTok may be exposing children to harmful content, including videos relating to suicide.
Of late, the app has come under fire because it is owned by Chinese company ByteDance, and U.S. lawmakers say the app may be harvesting information about users that could jeopardize national security.
“If you don’t know the dangers of an app like that, you shouldn’t be on it,” Bejarano said.