FILE - In this Sept. 28, 2020, file photo, The TikTok app logo appears in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato, File)
WASHINGTON (TND) — Two young girls allegedly died while attempting a viral social media challenge, and now their families are reportedly suing TikTok, claiming the social media giant is to blame due to its algorithms.
A pair of wrongful death lawsuits were filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court against TikTok, the Los Angeles Times reports, saying that both Lalani Erika Walton, 8, and Arriani Jaileen Arroyo, 9, were attempting to become social media famous, but instead wound up dead.
Both girls were reportedly attempting what is called the "blackout challenge," in which people are encouraged to choke themselves into unconsciousness while filming it for potential social media attention. The challenge has been around since 2008, according to People.com, but it has again resurfaced on TikTok.
The challenge has also been referred to by other names, including the "choking game" and "pass-out game." The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in 2008 that more than 80 people had died while attempting the challenge.
Both the Walton and Arroyo families, represented by the Social Media Victims Law Center (SMVLC), allege their girls died after trying the challenge. TikTok's "dangerous algorithm intentionally and repeatedly" pushed the challenge on their kids, incentivizing them to participate, the lawsuits claim.
Lalani and Arrani are not the only children to die recently while allegedly attempting the blackout challenge, other reports indicate. In fact, several children have reportedly died recently while giving the challenge a shot.
Nylah Anderson, 10, unintentionally hanged herself while attempting the challenge she saw on TikTok, her family claims per a Washington Post report. The LA Times says a number of other children, from ages 10 to 14, also lost their lives while attempting the challenge recently.
TikTok has reportedly denied in the past that the blackout challenge is a TikTok trend, saying it predates the platform and exists elsewhere online. The social media giant also reportedly told the Washington Post it has already blocked the use of the hashtag "#BlackoutChallenge" from its search results.
SMVLC's lawsuits are presenting the complaints as results of failed product design, rather than failed content moderation, an apparent attempt to sidestep federal law "Section 230" which mostly protects large social media platforms from being sued for their users' content.
Both the Walton and Arroyo families are requesting a jury trial and both are seeking unspecified amounts in damages.
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