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Influencer dies following TikTok live-stream drinking challenge

30 May 2023 By Jessica Mason

A social media influencer has died after live-streaming himself drinking several bottles of strong alcohol on China’s version of TikTok.

The influencer, known as Sanqiange (or Brother Three Thousand), was found dead just hours after he had been broadcasting himself taking part in a drinking challenge known as ‘PK’, according to Shangyou News.

The competition, which was against a fellow influencer, involved drinking the Chinese spirit Baijiu – a drink which can range between 30-60% ABV.

According to local reports, a friend of Sanqiange, also known by his surname Wang, the challenge took place in the early hours of 16 May and was live-streamed on his Douyin channel.

The influencer, named Sanqiange (or “Brother Three Thousand”) was found dead just hours after broadcasting himself taking part in a competition with a fellow influencer which involved drinking Baijiu, a Chinese spirit with a typical alcohol content of between 30% to 60%,

One of his friends told the outlet that Sanqiange – identified by his real-life surname of Wang – had taken part in an online challenge known as “PK” against another influencer in the early hours of May 16 and live-streamed the results on his Douyin channel.

The friend, identified only as Zhao, explained: “PK challenges involve one-on-one battles in which influencers compete with each other to win rewards and gifts from viewers, and often involve punishments for the loser – apparently in this case, drinking Baijiu. I don’t know how much he had consumed before I tuned in. But in the latter part of the video, I saw him finish three bottles before starting on a fourth. The PK games ended at around 1am and by 1pm (when his family found him) he was gone.”

Wang was, according to Zhao, a “decent and straightforward” person who had a history of filming himself taking part in contests and posting them online.

The video showing Wang taking part in his final challenge went viral before being removed.

In recent years, the global live-streaming scene has given influencers a platform as a means to sell products while building a following, however Wang’s death will undoubtedly spearhead a series of new debates surrounding the regulation of the industry due to the risks some streamers seem to take when accepting challenges.

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