<![CDATA[Loneliness among Generation Z has become an increasingly important social issue amid high digital connectivity and intensive TikTok use. The platform functions not only as entertainment but also shapes social experience through audiovisual content, algorithmic personalization, and repeated digital interaction. This study explores how TikTok's audiovisual hyperreality shapes the loneliness experienced by Generation Z in Yogyakarta, how the meaning of loneliness is subjectively constructed, how communication ethics emerges in the platform's algorithmic practices, and how digital media literacy operates as a capacity for resistance. A qualitative approach with an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) design was employed. Eight informants aged 18–24 years in the Special Region of Yogyakarta were purposively selected based on the criteria of using TikTok actively for at least four hours per day and experiencing loneliness associated with its use. Data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews, digital observation without screen recording, and seven-day reflective diaries. The analysis produced four superordinate themes: TikTok's audiovisual hyperreality, the construction of loneliness, ethical problems of platform communication, and media literacy as a capacity for resistance. Loneliness was interpreted as a paradox of connectivity through upward social comparison, the illusion of parasocial connection, and loneliness in the crowd. Ethical concerns centered on limited algorithmic transparency and pressure on user autonomy, while resistance depended on the integration of cognitive, behavioral, and ethical capacities. These findings carry implications for developing digital media literacy and strengthening platform accountability.]]>
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