How a fake jury in the trial of Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard went viral on TikTok

Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard trial recap in 3 minutes 3:00 (CNN) –– A man posing as one of the seven jurors who deliberated in Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard’s trial posted a series of content on TikTok last week about what he said were his insights from the high-profile trial that wowed the world. Although some perceptive social media users were quick to question his account — and even closely examined a pixelated image of what the man claimed were jury documents and which he posted as alleged evidence of his service — the eight Videos he posted on TikTok last Thursday and Friday managed to attract quite a bit of attention. Collectively, the posts amassed more than 2 million views, and were recirculated by large-scale content creators on YouTube and Instagram, reaching exponentially more people before the man deactivated the account sometime last night. Friday when CNN Business tried to get comment. TikTok did not respond to a request for comment. The Daily Mail newspaper published the man’s comments as an “exclusive”, while highlighting in the headline how little he knew about him: “A man who claims to be a JURY of the Depp-Heard trial says that the moment in which Amber lying about donating her divorce settlement money sank her case and that jury believed Johnny was physically abusive but not the instigator.” The Daily Mail did not respond to a request for comment. Several other outlets carried the story similarly. But the man behind the TikTok account does not reside in Virginia, where the trial took place. And, in fact, he was not part of the jury. In a text message this Sunday, the man admitted that everything “was just a joke.” This is the latest development in how the libel lawsuit involving Johnny Depp and Amber Heard was exploited by content creators and influencers on TikTok, which in turn generated news cycles. But it also revealed information about user awareness and the content that is rewarded on social networks. According to Casey Fiesler, an assistant professor of data science at the University of Colorado Boulder and a TikTok user, TikTok tends to promote content that is controversial in some way, or that the algorithm has determined people want to see. Because the man posing as a jury in the case said that he believed Depp’s story more than Heard’s, he reinforced the beliefs of Depp’s followers. “People believe the things they want to believe, absolutely,” Fiesler said. Feminist: the trial Depp vs. Heard did not kill the “MeToo” movement 4:26 Under an account with the name “seekinginfinite” (“seeking infinity”), the false jury stated in a post that they wanted to remain anonymous for now, but would “consider confirming” their identity in the future. The videos of him, in which he did not show his face, largely replicated common criticisms and remarks made by some social media creators during the course of the trial. The man claimed that he was “extremely uncomfortable” with the eye contact Heard allegedly made with him, to the point that she stopped looking at her while testifying. (Heard’s frequent eye contact with the jury was one of the most discussed topics during the times she took the stand.) He also claimed to be a fan of Depp’s lawyer, Camille Vasquez, who became such an internet sensation to the point that a TikToker said she tattooed Vasquez. “I just think she was really sharp and knew what she was doing and she did it with purpose and integrity,” @seekinginfinite said in one of the TikTok posts, responding to another user’s question about what the jury thought. of Vasquez. “Professional aside, she wasn’t too bad to look at.” It is important to note that the man made it clear that he did not believe Heard, which validated a point of view that many expressed for weeks on the platform: “Everything she said came out as pure shit,” he said in his publication original, calling Heard a “crazy woman.” The man is in his early 20s and works as a cinematographer. He appears to have been in Hawaii during the jury’s deliberations and after the verdict, according to Instagram posts. Asked if the alleged jury badge posted by the tiktoker could be legitimate, a spokesperson for the Fairfax County Department of Public Affairs said he couldn’t confirm based on the image shared on the social network. In addition, the spokesman said that he cannot confirm the identities of the jurors who deliberated in the trial, because they are under reserve for a year. However, jurors can discuss his experience before that time if they choose. His TikTok profile had some credibility from the fact that it wasn’t a brand new account created just for the purpose of claiming to be a juror — there were two previous travel-related posts. But CNN Business was able to trace the TikTok account’s previous name and avatar, which linked to the man elsewhere online. ‘I deleted it all’ When asked if he was involved in the trial, the man initially texted: “Sorry, that’s none of your business” before acknowledging that he was the person behind the account. “I deleted everything, please leave me alone and don’t spread my information. I don’t give you permission to use my information in any article,” he said. “There are more important things to write about, like mass shootings, climate change, war, etc,” he added. It’s not clear what the man was looking for, or why he himself would spend time publishing about the trial given the other pressing social issues. When asked what prompted him to post pretending to be a juror, he said, “I’m sorry, but I’m not going to answer any more questions.” Throughout Johnny Depp’s trial against Amber Heard, a large section of TikTok users came out in support of Depp, whose case centered on whether Heard had falsely and maliciously accused him of domestic abuse in an op-ed in The Washington. Post in 2018. Heard, for her part, countersued Depp. After six weeks of hearing their cases, the jury finally found that both Depp and Heard had defamed each other, with Depp receiving $15 million in damages and Heard only $2 million. TikTok’s algorithm works in such a way that it features an endless stream of pro-Depp content, and many users found that they could go viral by posting pro-Depp content. Because of the nature of his algorithm, on TikTok, Fiesler noted, “the chances are higher that someone with very few followers can make something go viral. [que en otras plataformas]”My first thought was, ‘Why do people think this is real?'” Fiesler said. “At the same time, there were a lot of comments, clearly just people assuming it was real. And there was certainly nothing to back that up. There was no evidence of any kind. I thought this is totally the kind of thing someone would do just for views, or for a joke, or whatever.” Fiesler said there’s an incentive for creators to post content that people engage with, to get more views. , followers and ultimately financial benefits if one’s own platform grows enough.For those who consume their news primarily through social media, the danger is in believing that what is being shown is the whole picture, Fiesler said. The big challenges with misinformation on social media is that it’s very, very difficult to correct,” he added.