TikTok must face lawsuit over 10-year-old girl’s death, US court rules | Reuters
Imagine scrolling through TikTok only to find a challenge that could change your life forever. That’s the nightmare that became reality for a 10-year-old girl who tragically lost her life after participating in the “blackout challenge,” a viral dare that encouraged users to choke themselves until they passed out. This heartbreaking incident led her mother to file a lawsuit against TikTok, arguing that the platform’s algorithm specifically recommended the dangerous challenge to her daughter.
You might think that big tech companies like TikTok are untouchable regarding legal action. After all, a federal law called Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 usually protects internet companies from being sued over content created by users. But here’s where things get interesting: a U.S. appeals court recently ruled that TikTok’s algorithm, which suggests content to users, doesn’t fall under this protection. The court said that when TikTok’s algorithm promotes specific content, it’s the company’s speech, not just a passive sharing of user posts.
This decision is a significant shift from previous court rulings that typically shielded online platforms from liability. The court based its ruling on a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision stating that when a platform uses algorithms to recommend content, it’s making editorial choices—just like a newspaper decides what stories to publish. And because these choices reflect TikTok’s judgments, the company can’t hide behind Section 230.
The ruling means that the lawsuit, initially dismissed by a lower court, is back in play. TikTok, owned by Chinese parent company ByteDance, is once again under legal scrutiny, with the mother’s lawyer declaring that “Big Tech just lost its ‘get-out-of-jail-free card.’” This case could set a precedent, pushing social media platforms to think twice about the content their algorithms promote, especially for young, impressionable users……..
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Rising Dough
In a world where algorithms can influence everything from your playlist to your shopping cart, how should businesses balance the pursuit of profit with the responsibility to protect consumers, especially the most vulnerable among us?
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Imagine your child being dumb enough to do this like if it was a good idea and then suing TikTok about it, that’s is like putting your iPhone in a microwave and suing 4chan over your own stupidity, or getting mad that a April fools prank made you cry thinking it was real so you decide to sue YouTube.
My point is blame yourself/ your child dumbness over it, and stop trying to snatch money out of companies hands because you let your dumb child do this dumb stuff unsupervised, honestly it is the moms fault and the Childs fault at the same time. Remember that one saying “if your friends jumped off a bridge would you do it?” now replace it with if your “friends choke their self out would you do it?” or “If your child does something dumb because of your lack of supervision, will you sue it?”.
And the fact that a 10 year old has tik tok is absurd.
Yeah but here is the thing you do not have to be 13+ to know what is right or wrong.