When going viral becomes fatal

Borneo Post

14 hours ago

She may be too young to read comments, but not too young to be watched by thousands. Is this consent, or coercion in cute disguise?
IN chasing for more clicks, shares, likes, gifts and monetary returns of their social media posts, a young woman lost her life.
Pan Xiaoting, a 24-year-old Chinese social media influencer made famous by her 'Mukbang' livestreams, died after a 10-hour livestreaming in the pursuit of eating up 1kg of food in front of her fans and audiences.
It was not an accidental death or suffering from illness, it was by her own voluntary act of performing for her audience.
I dread to say that the audiences are craving for excess.
Are we one of them? If there is no audience, there is no performer, and it is cruel to say that.
Autopsy performed on her revealed that her stomach had ripped open, severely deformed and filled with undigested food.
Yes, it is shocking; it is tragic.
'Mukbang' is a social media trend where individuals broadcast themselves eating large quantities of food, often interacting with their audiences.
It originated in South Korea – the word 'mukbang' is Korean for 'eating' and 'broadcast'.
Yes, it is entertaining, but the negative effects may influence viewers to overeat and develop unhealthy eating habits.
It is the result of social media trends where attention is money, and going to extremes is rewarded.
Only days after reading this news, my social media feeds were bombarded with viral videos of mothers feeding their very young children an excessive amount of food.
Probably, the quantity is more than what an adult can eat in one day.
Chubby cheeks, bright eyes, sweet smiles, baby talks are all that could attract viewers.
Who can resist such harmless innocence in this hectic world?
But as a mother who has raised two children, I cannot help but feel uneasy.
How can a child so small be possibly expected to consume that much food in one sitting?
I am worried that these parents are crossing the line by sharing innocent family moments to performing for strangers on the Internet.
The children enjoying a meal becomes moments of weaponising food just for clicks, likes and shares.
Social media has opened the door for ordinary people to become celebrities.
And with that, it has also unleashed a powerful, but also dangerous, drive to entertain.
Social media, which began as a space for creativity and for people to share their talents and connection with friends, has sadly turned into a stage where such uncomfortable excessive acts cost lives.
The various social media algorithms don't care about your well-being.
It doesn't know whether a child is genuinely hungry, or being pushed to eat more than they should.
It doesn't distinguish between authentic joy and dangerous pressure.
It only amplifies what gets the most reactions.
The tragedy of Pan Xiaoting is not an isolated case. It is a part of a larger problem that arose from monetisation of extremes for the sake of audiences.
And now, it is alarming that this mindset applies even to children.
We justify this by calling them 'family moment creators' or 'parenting influencers'.
But let's face the reality. Children are not participating; they are forced to perform by the parents.
They are too young to say no.
They are too trusting to consent, and they become the victims of the adults' pursuit for fame and fortune.
You may argue: 'What's wrong with a cute baby eating on camera?'
Yes, I read some of the comments of the viewers. Once someone raises the question 'how could the baby be eating such amount of food', there will be voices reprimanding the commenter that 'the baby is eating healthy food'.
As viewers, we are sending messages to support such videos by rewarding the acts with likes, monetary rewards and sponsorship deals.
Social media may be new, but the need for limits is not.
We have laws and reforms to protect the young in the real world.
But nobody stops the act of asking a child to eat 10 bowls of noodles in front of a live audience.
Is it acceptable when it is happening on a screen?
It is time for social media platforms to take greater responsibility.
Algorithms need to be recalibrated to favour health, honesty, and humanity – not harmful spectacle.
But even more importantly, we, as the audience, need to pause and reflect.
Every click is a vote. Every share is an endorsement.
We must ask ourselves: are we engaging with content because it is meaningful; or because it is outrageous?
Are we supporting creators who build communities; or those who risk their lives and exploit their families for a fleeting moment of 'virality'?
Let Pan Xiaoting's story be a wake-up call. She died not because she was poor or hungry, but because she was performing for an audience that demanded more and more and gave nothing back when the curtain fell.
Let us not applaud until it is too late.
Let us, instead, choose to follow, support and share content that uplifts and educates, not endangers – especially when children are involved.
We do not need another tragedy to realise that likes are not worth lives. fatal live-stream Mukbang social media viral