A Chinese daredevil plummeted to his death last month while attempting to record a viral video. Footage out of the accident is circulating throughout social media.
Wu Yongning, 26, amassed tens of thousands of social media followers by posting pictures and videos of himself engaging in risky stunts. He was known for “rooftopping.” He would clamber over tall buildings without a stitch of safety gear.
“From his interactions with his audience, it seems he really enjoyed the attention… But with all the likes and comments, he overestimated his own abilities and finally lost his life because of that feeling. Had Wu not been so popular on live-streaming apps, he might not have died,” opines an editorial printed in a Chinese newspaper.
The deadly stunt involved Wu trying to do pull-ups off of a skyscraper.
“More sources show he was on several live-streaming apps and he got many likes, too… His death should remind us to strengthen supervision over live-streaming apps. Some of them try to hype things up with obscene and dangerous things, and their purpose is to attract more eyeballs and make a profit. It is time we ended this,” continues the editorial.
The dangers of social media aren’t yet very well understood. It’s quite possible that Wu would still be alive if he hadn’t become an internet sensation. Dangerous behavior should be de-incentivized, not encouraged.
“Something fundamentally changed when it became less about just going up and having a good time with friends and more about who can take the photo of the other person in the most precarious situation,” a former rooftopper complained.
“Danger sells. There was a market for our images and whoever had the most ‘vertigo-inducing’ photo reigned supreme. It felt too fake, too contrived.”
https://youtu.be/FFribMhSoh4
(Source: Washington Post)