TikTok Creators Get Briefed by the White House on Ukraine Crisis

A collab we didn't expect to see in 2022.

Nope, it isn’t just big-time journos or world leaders that happens to. It’s what happened last week to 30 top TikTok creators for a Zoom meeting with US President Joe Biden’s administration.

In a bid to get ahead of misinformation on the platform and spread their messaging, creators were given a rundown on key information about the Ukraine crisis on Thursday, The Washington Post reports.

It comes as millions have turned to TikTok as a primary outlet to unpack the situation in real-time, with content spanning from at times, dangerous misinformation, to first-hand accounts from Ukrainian citizens.

valerie shashenok, a 20-year-old creative in ukraine is living in an underground bunker as russia destroys her city.

she’s sharing her life on tiktok and gaining tens of millions of views. she spoke to me about how humour keeps her will strong: https://t.co/q8Dv6uOYcG pic.twitter.com/FYxQrKQw3j

— Evy Kwong (@EVYSTADIUM) March 7, 2022

National Security Council staffers and White House Press Secretary, Jen Psaki, briefed the influencers about America’s strategic goals and answered questions on distributing aid to Ukrainians, working with NATO, and how the US would react if Russia were to use nuclear weapons.

The Post reports The White House has been watching "TikTok arrive on the news scene” closely, with officials stressing the power of the platform as a news source during the briefing.

Creators told The Post they "felt more empowered to debunk misinformation and communicate effectively about the crisis" after the briefing.

Within hours of the Zoom call finishing up, news creator Marcus DiPaola posted a TikTok with the key takeaways. It was viewed more than 300,000 times, but is now “currently unavailable.”

Other influencers weren’t as pleased. Jules Suzdaltsev, host of 'Good Morning Bad News', said it felt like a “press briefing for kindergartners” and big questions were dodged.

This was echoed by creator Khalil Greene, who wasn’t impressed with an answer to his question regarding the lack of support for other countries facing similar invasions and occupations, such as Palestine.

While the White House did admit that such a double standard exists, they did not outwardly reprimand America's own participation in some cases.

He posted his recap on TikTok here:

@kahlilgreene The White House invited content creators to learn more about the crisis in Ukraine. #hiddenhistory #ukraine #blackcommunitytiktok ♬ original sound - Kahlil

This isn’t the first time the government has utilised the power of TikTok and influencers to get their message across.

President Biden has often pursued online creators to sell major policy initiatives, like when they worked with dozens of top TikTok stars last year to encourage vaccination.

If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed about the Ukraine crisis, we’ve compiled a list of suggestions to help you feel involved or relieve your mental stress. Check them out here.

Header Image: Ron Lach via Pexels, Canva.