UpScrolled is just another echo chamber of selective empathy
This makes UpScrolled as terrible as all other social media platforms.
TikTok’s acquisition by Donald Trump’s ally Larry Ellison, followed by user complaints about censorship of anti-ICE content after its agents killed protestor Alex Pretti, sparked a user exodus to a little-known app called UpScrolled over the weekend.
Founded by Issam Hijazi, a Palestinian-Jordanian-Australian technologist, the platform is envisioned to allow communities to thrive “independently, with real control, transparency, and accountability.”
I joined the app in the early hours of its exploding popularity only to find out that the platform is no better – or worse – than the rest of social media.
What political content is on UpScrolled?
My UpScrolled feed was dominated by the content related to murders of Pretti and Renee Good, with users denouncing ICE's violence against protestors and immigrants.
As California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, announced a review into the censorship of Trump-critical content on TikTok, the UpScrolled users were freely drawing parallels between the Trump administration and fascism.
It’s time to investigate.
undefined Governor Gavin Newsom (@CAgovernor) January 27, 2026
I am launching a review into whether TikTok is violating state law by censoring Trump-critical content. https://t.co/AZ2mWW68xa
The platform’s algorithm seems to do a good job of giving voice to the Palestinian people. It showed me videos of Gazans talking about the life and destruction of their home as a result of Israel’s military campaign, as well as the Palestinian side of history.
Meta, the owner of Instagram and Facebook, has conducted systematic censorship of pro-Palestinian content after the conflict escalated in 2023, according to the Human Rights Watch report.
Facebook has reportedly restricted the ability of Palestinian news outlets to reach an audience during the war, the BBC investigation found. Meta called the allegations “unequivocally false.”
Given the poor track record of content moderation on US-owned social media platforms, users’ desire to find a less restrictive alternative is easy to understand. However, things on UpScrolled quickly turned ugly.
UpScrolled as Iran’s mouthpiece
When looking for content related to the Iranian protests, which erupted in December and were crushed with brutality, the algorithm showed me videos of the regime-friendly journalists and academics questioning the death toll of thousands and diverting the blame from Tehran.
Iranians’ resistance to the mullah regime and other geopolitical issues, like mass protests in Ukraine in 2013, were reduced to being either CIA or Israeli plots, conveniently avoiding the complex realities and differing opinions of people living in these countries.
This comes in stark contrast to UpScrolled users’ condemnation of the state violence against protestors in Minnesota, or Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
However, this is not surprising, nor unusual. Iran is the primary international backer of the Palestinians and adversary to the US and Israel. Many on the left have refrained from stronger reactions to Tehran’s crackdown on protestors.
Similar hypocrisy has been seen in Western countries – and on their social media – where some stopped short of condemning the US over abducting Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and threatening Greenland with invasion.
Users’ selective empathy and inability to look past their political affiliations to acknowledge the suffering of other humans make UpScrolled exactly like other social media platforms.
Hate speech is (not) allowed
UpScrolled states that the platform is committed to protecting freedom of expression but emphasizes that “with that freedom comes responsibility.” It prohibits harassment and hate, which includes attacks based on race and religion.
However, as of Monday, UpScrolled didn’t do a decent job removing antisemitic content. Within seconds of searching the hashtag #Jews, I found calls to kill “every single Jew,” Nazi-era caricatures, and outright Holocaust denial.
Sadly, this doesn’t make UpScrolled an exception. Hate speech against different ethnic and religious groups is rampant on social media and is further amplified by generative artificial intelligence (AI).
As the night unfolded, I found some unexpected content on the app. From Charlie Kirk discussing Ukraine and Andrew Tate’s philosophy on how many times a woman can fall in love to a propaganda-style video showcasing Russia's military power.
The winner, of course, is the video claiming that the Illuminati removed all the bells in the world to prevent people from using their healing power. Whether satire or not, it served as a reminder of what a crazy place social media can be.
What is the UpScrolled app?
The UpScrolled interface is highly similar to that of Instagram’s, with some X-like features blended in.
Users can upload images and videos and choose one of 25 categories, including sports, news, politics, tech, food, health, and fashion, to see related content. Like on X, users can also browse trending content by hashtags.
By Tuesday, the UpScrolled app held the 2nd spot in Apple's App Store, catching the platform unprepared.
“You showed up so fast our servers tapped out. Frustrating? Yes. Emotional? Also yes. We're a tiny team building what Big Tech stopped being,” the company posted on X.
It is yet to be seen whether the newcomer users will stick with the app, as high switching costs have led to limited success for multiple new social media platforms.
During a short-lived TikTok ban in the US last January, users rushed to the Chinese Red Note app, but the enthusiasm quickly faded.
My experience with UpScrolled is highly subjective and influenced by my own political biases. Some will definitely find the platform a safe alternative to their ideas. But now, it isn’t a place for a balanced political discussion.
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