It’s not all song and dance.
More and more children are being hospitalized – and even killed – after trying the various “challenges” they see on TikTok, and parents are speaking out.
“It’s hilarious!” said Jazzilynn Cook, a 35-year-old mother of two based in Dayton, Ohio.
Earlier this month, she had to take her 7-year-old son, Kyunn, and 5-year-old daughter, Aarhiya, to the hospital after they tried the “One Chip Challenge.”
Kyunn learned about the dangerous venture — where one uses a single Paqui brand tortilla chip flavored with the world’s hottest pepper — on TikTok.
Seven-year-old Kyunn and 5-year-old Aarhiya were hospitalized after attempting the One Chip Challenge. courtesy of Jazzilynn Cook
Although TikTok did not come up with the idea for the challenge or market it, the feat has become a viral sensation on the platform, where the hashtag #onechip has over 160 million views and #onechipchallenge2023 has about 21 million. (Paqui recently announced that it is working with retailers to remove the chips from store shelves. TikTok declined to comment for this article.)
Unbeknownst to her mother, Kyunn grabbed a bag of the spicier snack – which her mother had warned about earlier and sat right next to the regular chips – when they stopped at the gas station.
“Somehow he snuck out of the shop,” Cook, a machine operator at a factory, told The Post. He drove away, and three minutes later, the two children started screaming at the top of their lungs in the back of the car.
The One Chip Challenge has become a viral sensation on TikTok, where the hashtag #onechip has over 160 million views and #onechipchallenge2023 has about 21 million. Amplify Snack Brands
“I turned around and started panicking,” said Cook, who felt helpless at the time. “It was the scariest thing I’ve ever been through.”
The two children had to spend the night in hospital to be treated for burns to their eyes, mouth and stomach. Aarhiya also suffered from breathing problems and had to be given oxygen.
Cook blamed social media for the dire ordeal.
“It’s a very dangerous thing and TikTok should take responsibility for posting this on their platform,” he said.
Harris Wolobah dies after allegedly attempting One Chip Challenge.GoFundMe
In recent years, several tragedies have been linked to viral challenges on the social media giant.
Last October, Bloomberg reported that the “Blackout Challenge” – where a person tries to choke himself until he passes out – was linked to the deaths of at least 15 children under the age of 13 in an 18-month period. Last April, WGGB-TV reported that 10 elementary school children in Massachusetts were hospitalized after trying “Trouble Bubble,” a gum that contains the same ingredient as pepper spray, capsicum oleoresin, and has been popular on TikTok. That same month, 13-year-old Jacob Stevens died after taking too much Benadryl as a result of a TikTok challenge where someone took a large amount of the antihistamine. Earlier this month, a 14-year-old boy in Boston, Harris Wolobah, went to the ER and died after attempting the “One Chip Challenge”
Some grieving parents are taking legal action.
In October 2022, Michael and Shonell Green filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit in the Northern District of California against TikTok and tech company ByteDance on behalf of their late son Tate.
Tate Green was 14 years old at the time of his death. His father, Michael, recalls his love for cars and Muay Thai. courtesy of Mike and Shonell Green
Two months earlier, Shonell had found 14-year-old Tate unconscious in his bedroom after he allegedly attempted the Blackout Challenge.
The boy, who loves cars and Muay Tai, had spoken to his mother a few minutes earlier. He tried to save her and paramedics took her to the hospital where she was placed on life support and soon died.
The Greens were shocked. They didn’t realize that Tate had downloaded TikTok.
Shonell Green spoke to her son just minutes before she found him unconscious. He seems fine. courtesy of Mike and Shonell Green
“We didn’t know about the challenge. I’ve never heard of that before,” said Michael. “At first we thought Tate had killed himself, but when we actually saw him. We realized how happy he was. This was not intentional.”
The couple has found some solace in channeling their pain to raise awareness and hopefully help prevent some further tragedies.
“There needs to be some level of control or some management of the type of content that our kids see,” Michael said.
Green Family. In October 2022, Michael and Shonell Green, pictured here, filed a federal wrongful-death lawsuit in the Northern District of California against TikTok and tech company ByteDance on behalf of their late son Tate (left). courtesy of Mike and Shonell Green
“[You] can’t fathom how destructive, how devastating this is for children.”
Dean and Michelle Nasca of Long Island also spoke out after the death of their son, Chase.
Last February, the 16-year-old stepped in front of the Long Island Railroad after allegedly receiving more than 1,000 unsolicited videos of suicide and violence on TikTok.
He texted a friend on Snapchat, “I can’t do it anymore,” while at the track.
Dean and Michelle Nasca said their 16-year-old son allegedly received more than 1,000 unsolicited videos of suicide and violence on TikTok. Dennis A. Clark
Dean and Michelle Nasca hold a photo collage of their late son, Chase.Dennis A. Clark
Like the Greens, the Nascas saw no warning signs.
“We only discovered everything after he had passed. We had an idea that he was using social media but it was never an issue,” Dean told The Post.
After Chase’s death, they learned that he had received more than 1,000 unsolicited violence and suicide videos about how to end someone’s life. Several videos were saved on his phone. Someone had a suicide message that read: “Player Tip: K!ll yourself.” Another TikTok has a message that: “death is a gift.”
Chase Nasca is a star athlete loved by his friends and family. His father, Dean, said he is trying to raise awareness to protect other children from the potential dangers of TikTok. Dennis A. Clark
“We are horrified. We don’t understand why he has the video. The bottom line is, this was an unsolicited video — he was looking for weightlifting tips, a motivational speech, and they sent him a suicide video,” Dean told The Post. “He wasn’t looking for this — nothing in his history indicated that he was looking for this. ”
In March, the grieving couple testified before Congress on Capital Hill about the potential national security risks and harmful content targeted by TikTok.
The Nascas filed a lawsuit against TikTok in Suffolk County Superior Court in March, claiming their son was “targeted, overwhelmed and actively encouraged” to kill himself.
In March, Nascas testified before Congress on Capital Hill about the potential national security risks and harmful content targeted by TikTok.Getty Images
“I don’t think TikTok should exist,” Dean said.
He thought Chase had previously shown no signs of suicide. She remembers her son being excited about a ski trip he went on with his friends a few weeks before his death.
“It’s not like he came to me and said ‘I really don’t want to go [soccer] practice today’ or there’s a drop in his grades or he doesn’t hang out with these friends. There was not a single abnormality in his behavior that would indicate that something was wrong,” said Dean.
“There were a lot of great things he did in his life.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
