TikTok’s ‘Blackout Challenge’ Confronts the Limits of CDA Section 230 Immunity
After a ten-year old girl died by self-asphyxiation trying to recreate a “Blackout Challenge” after it appeared on her “For You” page on the TikTok platform, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has refined the contours of immunity under the Communications Decency Act.
December 20, 2024 at 10:01 AM
6 minute read
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has refined the contours of the Communications Decency Act, 47 U.S.C. Section 230 (“Section 230”).
In Anderson v. TikTok, Inc. the court held that the liability of an Internet Service Provider such as TikTok depended on whether TikTok was sharing content via the platform’s algorithm or engaged in something more. The question of whether TikTok’s recommendation algorithm transformed content into TikTok’s own expressive activity was not immunized by Section 230 and has disrupted the protection previously enjoyed by Internet platforms like TikTok.
Ten-year old Nylah Anderson died by self-asphyxiation trying to recreate the “Blackout Challenge” after it appeared on her unique “For You” page on the TikTok platform. The “Blackout Challenge” involved individuals recording their efforts to choke themselves using an array of common objects, such as purse strings and belts, until they passed out. The videos encouraged viewers to record themselves doing the same and then post their efforts on TikTok.
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