LONDON: TikTok Inc. won dismissal of a lawsuit accusing it of causing the death of a 10-year-old girl by promoting a deadly “blackout challenge” that encouraged people to choke themselves on its video-based social media platform.
US District Judge Paul Diamond in Philadelphia ruled Tuesday that the company was immune from the lawsuit under a part of the federal Communications Decency Act that shields publishers of others’ work.
“The wisdom of conferring such immunity is something properly taken up with Congress, not the courts,” Diamond wrote.
Jeffrey Goodman, a lawyer for the girl’s mother, Tawainna Anderson, said in a statement that the family would “continue to fight to make social media safe so that no other child is killed by the reckless behavior of the social media industry.”
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Anderson sued TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance Inc. in May, saying the company’s algorithm showed her daughter, Nylah Anderson, a video suggesting the blackout challenge.
In December 2021, Nylah attempted the blackout challenge using a purse strap hung in her mother’s closet, losing consciousness and suffering severe injuries, according to the lawsuit. She was rushed to a hospital but died five days later.
TikTok and ByteDance moved to dismiss the case, saying that under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, they could not be held liable for publishing third-party content. Diamond, while saying that the circumstances were “tragic,” agreed.
TikTok and other social media companies, including Facebook and Instagram parent Meta Platforms Inc. and YouTube parent Alphabet Inc, are facing a growing number of lawsuits around the country seeking to hold them liable for causing young people to become addicted to their products, and in some cases causing harm including eating disorders, self-injury and suicide.
A federal judicial panel earlier this month consolidated dozens of such cases in a new mass tort in a federal court in Oakland, California.
TikTok immune from lawsuit over girl’s death from ‘blackout challenge’
https://arab.news/cz8tk
TikTok immune from lawsuit over girl’s death from ‘blackout challenge’
- Parents say the app's algorithm showed their children deadly challenges
Saudi Arabia strengthens global ranking in 2026 Soft Power Index
- UAE maintains 10th place, Qatar climbs 2 spots
DUBAI: Saudi Arabia climbed three positions to 17th place in this year’s Soft Power Index, released on Tuesday by marketing consultancy Brand Finance.
Other Gulf nations also performed well, with the UAE maintaining its 10th-place ranking and Qatar and Bahrain each climbing two spots to No. 20 and No. 49, respectively, marking a rebound for the region after a softer showing in 2025.
The report indicates that the performance reflects sustained investment in proactive diplomacy, economic diversification and expanded initiatives across culture, tourism and sports.
It also comes at a time when several Western powers are recording declines in their rankings, highlighting the growing influence of Gulf states.
“The UAE remains a clear regional leader, while Saudi Arabia and Qatar have strengthened their global positions through focused economic diplomacy and international engagement,” said Savio D’Souza, managing director for the Middle East and Africa, Brand Finance.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE either maintained or improved their rankings across all key pillars, including familiarity, reputation and influence.
The Kingdom recorded notable gains, with increases of 25 points in the People & Values pillar and 12 points in the Culture & Heritage pillar.
“Although perceptions across some markets remain mixed, renewed upward movement in the rankings suggests that targeted, long-term soft power strategies are beginning to pay off,” D’Souza said.
Globally, the US retained its top position despite recording the steepest overall decline in its score, followed by China in second place. Japan rose to third place, overtaking the UK, which ranked fourth, while Germany placed fifth.
Brand Finance defines “soft power” as a “nation’s ability to influence the preferences and behaviors of various actors in the international arena (states, corporations, communities, publics, etc.) through attraction and persuasion rather than coercion.”
Each nation is assessed across 55 individual metrics, producing an overall score out of 100 and a ranking from first to 193rd.
