TikTok has acknowledged that a “moderator error” allowed Perez Hilton’s disturbing self-harm livestream to remain online for roughly 15 to 20 minutes on Tuesday, despite the platform’s automated systems flagging the content for removal within minutes of it starting.
A TikTok spokesperson explained the delay to Deadline, saying the automated moderation system correctly identified the stream and routed it to the platform’s U.S. moderation team, but a human error on that team’s end held up its takedown.
During the stream, Hilton, whose real name is Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr., appeared covered in what looked like blood while wielding a knife and cutting himself, other streamers who had joined the broadcast reportedly pleaded with him to stop.
TikTok’s community guidelines explicitly prohibit content depicting or promoting self-harm, as well as graphic or disturbing material, and the company says it maintains a 99.3 percent proactive removal rate for content that violates its policies, having suspended more than 50 million livestreams for rule violations.
Hilton’s account was ultimately suspended following the incident.
Multiple viewers contacted police as the stream continued, and the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office confirmed Hilton was “safely recovered” from his home and transported by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue to a local hospital for treatment.
His representatives at Golden Artists Entertainment said in a statement that they had been unable to reach him directly following the incident, adding that their focus remained on his health and privacy, as well as that of his family.
