TikTok said a moderator error delayed removal of the Perez Hilton livestream after its automated systems flagged it within minutes, according to a statement the company gave to WIRED. The company also said the error delayed the later ban of Hilton’s account, a failure that raises an awkward question for a platform that says it can detect this material quickly.
TikTok did not tell WIRED what the moderator error was or how long it held up the removal. The company said it alerted law enforcement shortly after its systems flagged the stream.
Hilton, the blogger whose legal name is Mario Lavandeira Jr., was later taken to a local hospital. A Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office detective told WIRED the office received multiple calls about a person livestreaming acts of self-harm on social media. The agency dispatched its crisis response unit and mental-health professionals, and a public-information officer confirmed the person was Lavandeira.
How long did TikTok say Perez Hilton’s livestream stayed online?
TikTok disputed online claims that the original stream remained accessible for 30 minutes or longer. The company told WIRED that it lasted around 15 minutes. That timing is TikTok’s account; the material available does not independently establish the stream’s precise duration.
In a separate statement reported by TMZ, TikTok said its automated systems flagged the stream within minutes and routed it to its U.S. moderation team for review, where a moderator error delayed removal. TikTok told TMZ that the account was permanently banned. It also said additional streams that followed were removed within about 90 seconds.
The company’s policy prohibits content depicting, encouraging or instructing suicide or self-harm, as well as graphic, violent or disturbing content. TikTok says it relies on both automated detection and human moderators to enforce those rules. This episode, on TikTok’s telling, is a case where the machine noticed the material and the process after that went wrong. The company has not supplied the missing mechanics.
What did Miami-Dade officials say about the response?
The sheriff’s office said an individual was safely taken to a local hospital for medical attention, according to reporting by the BBC and CBS News. Officials said crisis-response staff and licensed mental-health professionals were providing support and resources to the person’s family.
Dante Rusciolelli, Lavandeira’s manager, told WIRED that the team would not comment on TikTok’s moderation decisions or its communications with law enforcement. He said the team’s focus was Lavandeira’s health and well-being and asked that his privacy be respected.
If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or a suicidal crisis in the United States, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
This story draws on original reporting from WIRED.
