TikTok has banned the hashtag ‘SkinnyTok’ around the world in response to pressure from the French government, which pressed the issue directly with the social media giant.
The decision comes after intense scrutiny on the video platform over the widespread use of the ‘SkinnyTok’ hashtag used to promote unhealthy eating, especially by young women.
Paris had claimed a major victory on Sunday after the platform confirmed it had banned the hashtag. “This is a first collective victory,” France’s Digital Minister Clara Chappaz wrote on X.
Now, a TikTok spokesperson confirmed to Euractiv that “the SkinnyTok hashtag ban is enforced globally.” As part of the company’s regular review of safety measures, it has moved to block the hashtag because it is “linked to unhealthy weight loss content”, they said.
The move raises questions over the credibility of the European Commission as a tech enforcer, after the French government chose to pressure TikTok directly rather than involve the EU executive.
Chappaz traveled to Dublin last month to meet TikTok’s Trust and Safety team. According to her own LinkedIn post, Chappaz was accompanied by Arcom President Martin Ajdari, who oversees national implementation of the EU’s Digital Services Act, and CNIL President Marie-Laure Denis, head of France’s data protection authority.
The only EU-level representative present was French MEP Stéphanie Yon-Courtin from the Renew group. There was no representative from the Commission.
The Commission opened an investigation into TikTok under the Digital Services Act, focused on child protection, over a year ago in February 2024.
Although the decision marks a major success for content moderation and the protection of minors – both priorities often emphasised by Henna Virkkunen, the commissioner in charge of enforcing the EU’s content rules – she has so far remained silent on the ‘SkinnyTok’ case.
The Commission said that the EU executive “remains in contact” with French authorities on DSA enforcement.
(jp/om)
