Gory depictions of real-life violence and crimes are not confined to the dark corners of the Internet. They appear in everyday social media feeds, regularly surfacing between posts about the latest celebrity updates, political commentary, animal videos, and DIY home improvement tips. The increasing trend of users posting or livestreaming heinous and unthinkable acts online can trigger emotional distress in viewers, particularly victims’ families. Violent content spreads like virtual wildfire once it inevitably reaches virality and appears on consumers’ feeds with little to no warning, and no recourse. The current legal framework, primarily governed by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act shields social media platforms from liability while they profit from the viral dissemination of violent content.
This Note delves into the intersection of online harm, social media platforms, and the legal challenges faced by victims in the United States seeking redress for this cyber-tort. Unlike traditional intentional infliction of emotional distress cases, victims in the online realm face practical barriers in pursuing monetary damages against content creators, and CDA 230 prevents a cause of action against the intermediary. The United States lags far behind global efforts, led by the European Union, Germany, and Australia to hold intermediaries accountable through legislative measures. This Note calls for U.S. legal reform with intermediary accountability at the forefront and offers an alternative approach to provide victims with avenues for redress in cases of cyber IIED. This pioneering exploration extends the traditional IIED framework to encompass violent online content and emphasizes the urgent need for legal reform to address the evolving landscape of cyber-torts.
* J.D. Candidate, 2024, University of Illinois College of Law; B.A., 2021, University of Illinois. Thank you to the University of Illinois Law Review for their hard work on this Note and the entire 2024 Volume. Thank you to Professor Jennifer Robbennolt for guiding me throughout the process. Thank you to Justice Debra Walker for invaluable mentorship and encouraging me to join law review. Finally, I dedicate this Note to my mother, Diane Panos—thank you for inspiring me to follow your footsteps in law, for your unwavering support along the way, and for being the best mom and role model.
The full text of this Note is available to download as a PDF.