TikTok

Stories 101 - 120 | << Prev   Next >>

A Teen TikTok Star, an Obsessed Fan. One Ended Up Dead

The 'New York Times' speaks with Ava Majury and her family

(Newser) - "We chose what’s best for our family. We know there are going to be two sides, and some people won’t understand." The New York Times lays out the sides in the story of Ava Majury, a then-13-year-old who downloaded TikTok during the pandemic and quickly established...

Moderator Sues TikTok Over 'Extreme' Videos She Watched

Candie Frazier says she suffered psychological trauma over 'graphic' content she had to view

(Newser) - As part of her job for Canadian tech company TELUS International, Candie Frazier sifted through videos for TikTok, serving as a third-party moderator to make sure the most disturbing content didn't stay online. Now Frazier is suing, with a complaint she hopes will go class action, accusing the social...

It Began With a Bobby Pin. Now She Has a New Home

TikTokker Demi Skipper describes 'surreal' trading spree that nabbed her a Nashville abode

(Newser) - A few months into the coronavirus pandemic, Demi Skipper offered up a bobby pin for trade. She's been trading up ever since, acquiring an Xbox, a diamond necklace, and several cars. But the 30-year-old San Francisco resident, who amassed 5 million followers while documenting her trades with strangers on...

Teen Brand Quits Social Media: 'Something Has to Change'

Lush will shutter IG, FB, TikTok, Snapchat on Black Friday, won't come back til user safety is improved

(Newser) - While most brands are revving up their social media for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the rest of the holiday shopping season, one teen favorite just made a shocking announcement: It's shuttering its social media entirely on the day after Thanksgiving. At least for now, says Lush Cosmetics—known...

After 22 Years in Jail, Dad-Daughter TikTok Dance Goes Viral

Justine Tuckett reunites with dad Bill Lorance

(Newser) - Justine Tuckett was 5 years old when her father was sent to prison for murdering his stepfather in 1999. Over the next 22 years, Bill Lorance would miss her many dance recitals and her wedding. "When I was younger every time I blew out my birthday candles, I would...

Teen Girls With Tics Had One Thing in Common

They watched a lot of TikTok videos

(Newser) - About a decade ago in upstate New York, a group of teen girls inexplicably developed tics—verbal outbursts, twitches, etc.—for no apparent reason. The phenomenon in Le Roy was diagnosed as a case of "mass psychogenic illness." The incident is cited by both the Wall Street ...

Why Everyone Is Watching a 13-Year-Old Pug on TikTok

For one thing, Noodle approves of laying around most of the time

(Newser) - Thousands if not millions of people are apparently deciding what to do on any given day based on whether an old pug decides to use his legs or not. For years, New York City's Jonathan Graziano has been playing a game with his 13-year-old pug, Noodle, called "bones...

'Slap a Teacher' Challenge Pulls in More Victims

But TikTok insists the challenge didn't originate on its platform

(Newser) - Teachers' groups , local authorities , and law enforcement continue to warn against the newest supposed TikTok challenge— one that involves hitting teachers —but the social media platform is now saying it doesn't think the dare originated on TikTok. Teachers in Missouri and South Carolina are among those who'...

Latest TikTok Challenge Sees Teachers Assaulted

Connecticut AG says platform must reform

(Newser) - TikTok users have been compelled to set themselves on fire and choke themselves until they pass out or die . Now, the trend of dangerous social media challenges continues with a new call to abuse teachers. "Educators beware!" the California Teachers Association warned Tuesday, noting a challenge spreading on...

Teen&#39;s Video Inadvertently Affects Thousands of Studies
Teen's Video Inadvertently
Affects Thousands of Studies
in case you missed it
Oct 2, 2021 6:30 AM CDT

Teen's Video Inadvertently Affects Thousands of Studies

Sarah Frank's tips on 'side hustles' led to a deluge at site used by social scientists

(Newser) - The Verge has a strange tale about how a well-meaning teenager inadvertently messed up more than 4,000 social science studies. In July, Sarah Frank posted a video on TikTok giving advice on how to make extra cash through "side hustles." In one of her tips, she suggested...

It&#39;s a Huge Milestone for TikTok
It's a Huge Milestone for TikTok
Sep 28, 2021 11:19 AM CDT

It's a Huge Milestone for TikTok

App reaches 1 billion monthly active users, for 45% growth since July 2020

(Newser) - TikTok is celebrating a huge accomplishment: recruiting one in 7.5 people on the planet to tune in to its videos each month. The company announced it had reached 1 billion monthly active users in a Monday blog post , while Chief Operating Officer Vanessa Pappas thanked users in—what else?—...

Web Host Terminates Site for Reporting Abortions

GoDaddy says Texas Right to Life violated privacy rules

(Newser) - People incensed by a Texas Right to Life website for anonymously reporting women who had sought abortions asked to speak to the manager, and it worked. While TikTok users and Redditors flooded the site with fake tips, other people went straight to the top. The site’s host, GoDaddy, has...

Doctors Across the US: Please Don't Do Milk Crate Challenge

Viral videos show people wiping out while trying to ascend towers of milk crates

(Newser) - If you were wondering if August might come to a close without a stupid , silly , or downright dangerous social-media-driven fad making the rounds, put those fears to rest—the "milk crate challenge" is here. And it's a combination of all three (stupid, silly, and dangerous), with some platforms...

TikTok Personality Dies After Shooting in Theater

Anthony Barajas and Rylee Goodrich, who died last week, were watching 'The Forever Purge'

(Newser) - Anthony Barajas, a TikTok personality who was shot last week at a movie theater in California, died Saturday. He had been on life support since the attack Monday night, BuzzFeed reports. Barajas, 19, and Rylee Goodrich, 18, were found shot in the head after a screening of The Forever Purge ...

4th Child's Death Blamed on TikTok Challenge

Latest is a 12-year-old boy in Oklahoma

(Newser) - A 12-year-old boy has died in Oklahoma after reportedly taking part in a TikTok challenge in which participants choke themselves until they pass out. Police officers were called just before midnight Monday to an apartment building in Bethany, where they found the boy unconscious and not breathing, with ligature marks...

Embarrassing Call to Fire Dept.: 'I Am Stuck in a Metal Chair'

27-year-old Sydney Jo of Ann Arbor, Mich., got in over her head while filming a video earlier this month

(Newser) - A Michigan woman with a rather unusual vocation recently found herself in quite the predicament when content she was trying to create ended with a humiliating call to the fire department. It seems that 27-year-old Sydney Jo of Ann Arbor is a Houdini of sorts, often recording herself trying to...

Trump Executive Orders on TikTok, WeChat Are Replaced

Under new order, Commerce Dept. will complete 'evidence-based' analysis

(Newser) - The White House has dropped Trump-era executive orders that attempted to ban the popular apps TikTok and WeChat and will conduct its own review aimed at identifying national security risks with software applications tied to China, officials said Wednesday. A new executive order directs the Commerce Department to undertake what...

149 Arrested After Beach Party Goes Viral

As many as 2.5K were drawn to Huntington Beach Saturday night

(Newser) - A birthday party invitation that went viral on TikTok brought hundreds of people to a raucous celebration on a Southern California beach Saturday night, prompting police to declare an unlawful assembly and arrest nearly 150 people after they refused orders to disperse, the AP reports. The massive gathering began with...

The Term &#39;Cheugy&#39; Is Having a Moment
The Term 'Cheugy' 
Is Having a Moment
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
May 15, 2021 7:00 AM CDT

The Term 'Cheugy' Is Having a Moment

Generally, it refers to a trend that's somewhat out of date

(Newser) - Do you use cheesy hashtags on your social media posts? Are you an adult Disney fan? You just might be "cheugy," a term that's gone viral on TikTok and is slowly seeping its way into Gen Z vernacular—often as a jab against members of older generations....

Adam Sandler&#39;s Very Short IHOP Visit Goes Viral
IHOP Hostess
Kicking Herself
After Adam Sandler
Encounter
in case you missed it
May 2, 2021 9:31 AM CDT

IHOP Hostess Kicking Herself After Adam Sandler Encounter

Worker didn't recognize him under his face mask, caused him to leave after informing him of long wait

(Newser) - An IHOP hostess got her 15 minutes of fame this week after posting a video of her meeting Adam Sandler, though she didn't know it was him when she met him. People reports that Dayanna Rodas' TikTok footage shows herself with a masked Sandler, who was dressed casually in...

Stories 101 - 120 | << Prev   Next >>