Mom Sues TikTok After 10-Year-Old Daughter Dies Attempting 'Blackout Challenge'

Blackout Challenge Tawainna Anderson Nylah Anderson TikTok social media social media addiction

By Joel Brussels , Parent Herald May 14, 08:03 pm

Photo: (Photo : CHRIS DELMAS/AFP via Getty Images)

Tawainna Anderson, the mom of a 10-year-old girl alleged to have died last December after taking part in a viral social media challenge has launched a wrongful death lawsuit against social media platform TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, for their role in the incident.

NBC News reported that Nylah Anderson died last year after taking part in the "Blackout Challenge." According to the lawsuit, which was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on Thursday, May 12, the said challenge encourages social media users to try to hold their breath until they pass out.

The lawsuit stated that Anderson found her daughter passed out on December 7 and rushed her to a hospital, where she spent days in a pediatric intensive care unit. Nylah eventually succumbed to her injuries and died on December 12.

Anderson accuses TikTok of negligence and having a defective design

Anderson has now accused TikTok and its parent company of negligence and having a "defective design," blaming the algorithms of the social media platform for exposing a young kid to a dangerous challenge. The interface of TikTok automatically suggests video to users as they scroll the app's main feed, which is known as its "For You Page," according to the Daily Mail.

According to the lawsuit, the viral and deadly TikTok Blackout Challenge was thrust in front of Nylah on her TikTok For You Page as a result of the platform's algorithm. The lawsuit said that the TikTok defendants' algorithm determined that the deadly Blackout Challenge was well-tailored and likely to be of interest to 10-year-old Nylah Anderson, resulting in her death.

TikTok issued a statement, saying the disturbing 'challenge,' which people seem to learn about from sources other than TikTok, long predates their platform and has never been a TikTok trend.

The company added that they remain vigilant in their commitment to user safety and would immediately remove related content if found. TikTok said that their deepest sympathies go out to the family for their tragic loss.

Parents becoming more concerned with their kids' social media use

Social media has become a growing source of panic in recent years for parents concerned about the rise of so-called challenges that can be dangerous for users. According to the Associated Press, a 12-year-old was reported to have died In April 2021 after his family said he tried the same blackout challenge on TikTok.

TikTok expressed "profound sympathies" for the child and his family at the time, saying in a statement that they have no higher priority than protecting the safety of their community, and content that promotes or glorifies dangerous behavior is strictly prohibited and promptly removed to prevent it from becoming a trend on their platform.

Nylah was described in the lawsuit as an active, happy, healthy, and incredibly intelligent child who by the age of 10 spoke three languages.