Research on Tiktok Usage among Visually Impaired Groups: Media Empowerment and Social Integration

Abstract

Against the backdrop of digitalization, short-video platforms like Tictok have become a vital channel for the visually impaired to participate in society, yet this group still faces multiple digital barriers. This study explores the Tictok usage of the visually impaired in China based on the media empowerment theory, focusing on the mechanisms of media empowerment and social integration, as well as the practical dilemmas they encounter. It synthesizes existing empirical and theoretical research findings to analyze the technical foundation, social value, structural obstacles and optimization paths of the visually impaired’s short-video practice. The results show that Tictok empowers the visually impaired in self-expression, economic income and social connection, forming a positive cycle of online visibility and offline recognition, and effectively promoting their social integration. However, the group is also plagued by technical bias, algorithm discrimination, privacy risks and digital literacy gaps, with internal digital divides existing due to urban-rural and educational differences. The study concludes that the digital inclusion of the visually impaired requires collaborative efforts from multiple subjects: platforms should optimize barrier-free design and algorithm mechanisms, society should strengthen digital literacy education, and the state should improve relevant policy guarantees. This research enriches the application of media empowerment theory in disability studies and provides empirical evidence for building an inclusive short-video ecosystem.