diff --git a/changelogs/fragments/fix_taggged_gather.yml b/changelogs/fragments/fix_taggged_gather.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..5e36e09738
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelogs/fragments/fix_taggged_gather.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+bugfixes:
+    - now default is ``list`` so ``None`` is bad comparison for gathering
diff --git a/lib/ansible/executor/play_iterator.py b/lib/ansible/executor/play_iterator.py
index 289bb867ec..9bd78c932d 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/executor/play_iterator.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/executor/play_iterator.py
@@ -180,7 +180,7 @@ class PlayIterator:
         }
 
         # Unless play is specifically tagged, gathering should 'always' run
-        if self._play.tags is None:
+        if not self._play.tags:
             setup_task.tags = ['always']
 
         if gather_timeout: