Controversial ‘LabGerm’ Videos Spark Outrage Online

In recent weeks, a wave of videos labeled as “LabGerm” have gained traction across social media. These videos typically begin with a pair of gloved hands, set against a white backdrop, as an AI-generated voice narrates. In the video foreground, disturbing experiments are performed on fish, while upbeat music plays. Some content appears AI-generated, while others seem to feature real animals in distress. The lack of findings or conclusions suggests the shock factor is the main appeal.

These videos, mostly originating from Chinese social media, are shared widely on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook. They have amassed millions of views and stirred significant outrage, which inadvertently fuels their further spread, a phenomenon known as ‘rage bait.’ This term has cultivated a niche involving reaction videos, discussions, memes, and merchandise. An NBC News review identified several videos depicting cruelty towards small animals, including pleco fish and insects.

NBC News found that these videos likely started on Douyin, a Chinese social media app, where at least 49 accounts were found spreading such content. TikTok has removed some accounts for breaching community guidelines, yet similar videos persist, both on TikTok and other platforms like YouTube and Meta.

The spread of these videos highlights the challenges of moderating harmful content online. Nicola O’Brien from the Social Media Animal Cruelty Coalition noted that while outrage exists, it often leads users back to the initial content via reactions or calls to action, thereby increasing its reach.

The situation mirrors past incidents of animal cruelty content involving monkeys, cats, and dogs, which were confined to less visible parts of the internet. However, pleco fish videos have reached a much wider audience. The internet has long been a platform for disturbing media, evolving from niche websites to major social media channels that try to mitigate such content through rules and policies.

The vastness of social media makes content moderation difficult. Automated systems struggle to distinguish between content engaged with as interest versus outrage, allowing suboptimal content to slip through. Despite active efforts by companies to flag and remove such videos, the drive to post remains strong.

A TikTok spokesperson confirmed account deletions following detective work by NBC News, stating the platform prohibits animal abuse and has resources for reporting violations. Conversely, a spokesperson for Meta did not comment, and Douyin accounts continue to hold such content in violation of their stated policies.

The origins and motivations behind these videos remain unclear, as does their journey from Chinese platforms to global sites. Douyin, primarily available in mainland China, Macau, and Hong Kong, was reported by ByteDance to NBC News still housing the problematic content.

Some accounts have posted that they ceased uploading pleco fish videos to avoid account bans. O’Brien noted that moderation systems and public perception often overlook fish as sentient beings capable of suffering, unlike more familiar animals.

Professor Peter Li from the University of Houston, who has been monitoring these videos, speculates that their continued presence is partly due to AI usage. While some users request specific experiments in comments, Li suggests if real footage is unavailable, AI-generated content might fill the void.

China lacks national legislation against animal cruelty, complicating legal action against such content. Even though some companies take action, including Li’s reports to Douyin, the flow of fish torture videos continues unabated.

Li remarked that societal perceptions of fish as unimportant creatures contribute to the lack of sympathy and subsequent action. If similar empathy extended to these creatures as it does to dogs and cats, the trend might not persist.