The collective consists of the households of seven teenage ladies, two of whom died by suicide. In September 2023, the household of 15-year-old Marie filed felony costs in opposition to TikTok after her loss of life, accusing the platform of “inciting suicide,” “failure to help an individual at risk,” and “selling and promoting strategies for self-harm.”
TikTok’s algorithm, Boutron-Marmion mentioned, had trapped Marie in a bubble of poisonous content material linked to bullying she skilled due to her weight.
The case depends on a British precedent, the place a coroner concluded that Molly Russell, a 14-year-old who took her personal life after scrolling on Pinterest and Instagram, had been systematically uncovered to graphic content material depicting self-harm and suicide.
In the USA, present and former Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump have spoken out in favor of repealing Part 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which protects corporations from being sued for user-posted content material housed on their platforms.
Democratic candidate Kamala Harris has not taken a public stance, however voted in 2018 on a invoice that created an exception to Part 230 to carry platforms accountable for intercourse trafficking.
With this new civil go well with, Algos Victima goals to deliver TikTok’s algorithm and enterprise mannequin beneath scrutiny in court docket.