Flying is stressful enough, so imagine witnessing a death mid-flight, which is exactly what happened to TikToker @greeneyedworld_. Her flight was only about 15 minutes from landing when the captain made an announcement.
Soon, an urgent message came over the intercom, asking any medical personnel on the flight to push their blue button. The woman in front of her pushed her button.
The guy sitting beside her said that she probably needed to go up to the front of the plane.
The next thing they knew, another guy across the aisle was saying that the woman was performing CPR on a girl. TikToker @greeneyedworld_ scooted out of her seat a bit to see what was happening.
The guy across the aisle took out his phone and started recording. She was shocked by the man’s lack of boundaries.
“Luckily, the flight attendant caught wind of it and ran in front of him and was like, do not do that, sir,” recalled @greeneyedworld_.
“Have some respect, please. I guess the man didn’t get the memo because once they took her out on the gurney, he went to his window and then started filming her getting up on the gurney.”
Despite the visible emergency and gravity of the moment, he kept recording, turning someone’s final moments into online content.
In the comments section, most people agreed that recording such a vulnerable moment was certainly very invasive, but noted that the documentation could be useful.
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“I agree it feels off-putting and inappropriate, but I also see the value in documenting tragic incidents. You never know if that could come in helpful for her family, the airlines, her medical team, or the police,” pointed out one user.
“I know a doctor who doesn’t practice anymore, but when he helps on flights, he insists they video because he doesn’t want liability if someone makes false claims. But any old rando should not record,” wrote another.
“I work in the ER, and the paramedics have told me about being recorded doing CPR out in public, and we’ve also had family find out from Facebook that their loved one had CPR in progress from one of those recordings/livestreams because it’s a small town. I really wish people wouldn’t do that,” commented a third.
At the heart of the discussion is a larger question about boundaries in today’s digital age. Just because we can record everything, does that mean we should?
What if someone does not consent to being recorded while they’re out in public? Does that give one the right to film them?
For @greeneyedworld_, it was clear to her that compassion should always come before content, particularly when a crisis is occurring. Some moments just aren’t meant to be filmed.
By Emily Chan
Emily Chan is a writer who covers lifestyle and news content. She graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in... More about Emily Chan
