Death of girl blamed on TikTok challenge

Chinese-owned social media giant hit with US lawsuit by family over online choking dare

TikTok has been blamed in a lawsuit for the death of a 10-yearold US girl who allegedly took part in an online challenge in which people choke themselves until they black out.

Nylah Anderson, an intelligent child who could speak three languages, was found unconscious in her bedroom in suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania state, on December 7, according to a complaint filed in federal court. She spent five days in a paediatric intensive care unit before dying.

Anderson’s family accused the social media platform of marketing a defective product and negligence, saying in the suit that the dangerous dare “was thrust in front” of the girl by TikTok on her “for you” page.

The “algorithm determined that the deadly blackout challenge was well-tailored and likely to be of interest to Nylah Anderson and she died as a result”, the suit said, which also named TikTok owner ByteDance as a defendant.

TikTok did not comment on ongoing litigation, the company said. In a previous statement issued in response to Anderson’s death, the company said “this disturbing challenge, which people seem to learn about from sources other than TikTok, long predates our platform”.

TikTok remained vigilant in its commitment to user safety and would remove any content related to the blackout challenge from its app, the company said, adding “our deepest sympathies go out to the family for their tragic loss”.

The TikTok case joined others that accused social media companies of wrongful deaths, including a car crash that killed three young men who were allegedly using a Snapchat speedometer feature to record themselves driving at more than 190km/h and another linking a 16-year-old’s suicide to an Instagram addiction.

At least four other children died while taking part in the blackout challenge, according to the Andersons’ suit.

Participants choke themselves with household items like a shoelace or power cord until they black out for a few seconds and then capture the euphoric rush they get regaining consciousness.

Anderson’s mother, Tawainna Anderson, said since her daughter’s death she had discovered Nylah was not the only victim of the blackout challenge.

“It is time that these dangerous challenges come to an end so that other families don’t experience the heartbreak that we live every day,” she said.

Chinese-owned TikTok was the most downloaded social media app in the world last year, according to Apptopia. At only six years old, the app is already growing faster than YouTube.

The app exploded in popularity during the pandemic, with its short dancing clips and lipsynching skits entertaining teenagers at rates higher than other social platforms.