[taken from The Daily Dish by Andrew Sullivan]
A 19-year-old Florida teen's suicide broadcast Wednesday on Justin.tv was a result of an overdose of opiates and benzodiazepine, the Broward County Medical Examiner & Trauma Services Division said Friday.
The Pembroke Pines teen was pronounced dead about 6 p.m. on Wednesday, coroner spokeswoman Sherri Baker said in a telephone interview. She said benzodiazepine is used for depression and insomnia.
About 185 people were viewing the feed on the San Francisco-based live-streaming service. The teen had announced his pending suicide on a bodybuilding.com chat forum, which linked to the broadcast. He left an online suicide note. Viewers were seen egging him on.
The chat's moderator called the authorities, Baker said, and police broke into the residence.
Justin.tv CEO Michael Seibel said in an e-mail: "We regret that this has occurred and respect the privacy of the broadcaster and his family during this time. We have policies in place to discourage the distribution of distressing content, and our community monitors the site accordingly. This content was flagged by our community, reviewed, and removed according to our terms of service."
Public suicides are common; people jump from bridges and buildings. But the phenomenon is now encroaching on to the global arena offered by the internet. A British man suffered the same fate two years ago after being goaded to hang himself while in a webcam chatroom. And the net is also a known medium for organizing suicide pacts.
While online viewers watched a police officer prodding the Florida teen to see if he was alive, their chat comments ranged from OMG to LOL.
Justin.tv is an open network of thousands of live streaming channels. The network, named after Justin Kan, its first star, has been the target of pranksters and hackers.
Soon after Justin.tv launched, viewers played a prank on Kan, calling the cops from his cellphone to report a stabbing. With guns drawn, the authorities broke into Kan's apartment to the delight of viewers.
A 19-year-old Florida teen's suicide broadcast Wednesday on Justin.tv was a result of an overdose of opiates and benzodiazepine, the Broward County Medical Examiner & Trauma Services Division said Friday.
The Pembroke Pines teen was pronounced dead about 6 p.m. on Wednesday, coroner spokeswoman Sherri Baker said in a telephone interview. She said benzodiazepine is used for depression and insomnia.
About 185 people were viewing the feed on the San Francisco-based live-streaming service. The teen had announced his pending suicide on a bodybuilding.com chat forum, which linked to the broadcast. He left an online suicide note. Viewers were seen egging him on.
The chat's moderator called the authorities, Baker said, and police broke into the residence.
Justin.tv CEO Michael Seibel said in an e-mail: "We regret that this has occurred and respect the privacy of the broadcaster and his family during this time. We have policies in place to discourage the distribution of distressing content, and our community monitors the site accordingly. This content was flagged by our community, reviewed, and removed according to our terms of service."
Public suicides are common; people jump from bridges and buildings. But the phenomenon is now encroaching on to the global arena offered by the internet. A British man suffered the same fate two years ago after being goaded to hang himself while in a webcam chatroom. And the net is also a known medium for organizing suicide pacts.
While online viewers watched a police officer prodding the Florida teen to see if he was alive, their chat comments ranged from OMG to LOL.
Justin.tv is an open network of thousands of live streaming channels. The network, named after Justin Kan, its first star, has been the target of pranksters and hackers.
Soon after Justin.tv launched, viewers played a prank on Kan, calling the cops from his cellphone to report a stabbing. With guns drawn, the authorities broke into Kan's apartment to the delight of viewers.
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