"I saw this video once, it was really messed up. I'm sure you saw it too."
Item #: SCP-L057
Object Class: Keter
Special Containment Procedures: Researchers must continue their efforts to solicit testimony from individuals who have viewed SCP-L057. Should their descriptions contain missing elements or show evidence of further absences, they are to be documented in detail and added to the ongoing count.
Attempts made by members of the public to collate data relating to SCP-L057's content, presence, or the disparity between instances are to be interfered with.
Description: On June 5th, 2015, the Foundation's attention was drawn to a study conducted as part of a rejected doctoral dissertation. Necessary containment efforts were minimal, as the paper had already been resubmitted with all mention of SCP-L057 removed. Relevant excerpts of the original document have been included.
Running Head: VIRAL DEPICTIONS OF GRAPHIC DEATH
████ 1
Viral Depictions of Graphic Death
A Dissertation Presented to
The University of ███ █████
School of Social Sciences
Department of Sociology
In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree
Doctor of Sociology
By
███████ █. ████
March 2015
[IRRELEVANT PAGES EXCLUDED]
The study found 25 separate instances of graphic media that were described or mentioned by more than one study participant. References to these instances ranged between 2 and 13 in number. Descriptions of their content were somewhat inconsistent between participants, but followed an expected pattern, decreasing in accuracy when more detailed aspects were discussed.
Among these instances, a statistical anomaly emerged in which one audiovisual depiction of homicide1 was distinctly mentioned by 73% of those who participated in the study. The anomaly became evident in the descriptions themselves, when the majority of participants who had seen the video were able to recall seemingly irrelevant details with accuracy. Aspects such as the style of shoes worn by the perpetrators, specific epithets directed at the victim (including the exact wording of these phrases), and the presence of a folded, polka-dot umbrella in the background were corroborated by 70-80% of those surveyed.
Of a more unusual nature, central elements of the purported video differed between participants at a much higher rate than the estimated baseline. Instances of mutilation, either shown on-screen or having occurred prior to recording, were described by 88% of those who participated in the study. As shown in Figure 4 below, 52% reported that dismemberment had occurred during the video's runtime. 28% of these individuals recalled seeing amputated limb(s) or digit(s) being carried out of view by one of the perpetrators. 61% of those who made this observation described the person depicted as a tall man in a black balaclava, wearing a hoodie with a studded cross on the front. All were adamant that the man deliberately looked away from the camera.
Figure 5 details an additional anomaly found in descriptions of the video. 21% of study participants who attested to the occurrence of dismemberment mentioned additional limbs and digits being visible on-screen. The same assertion was made by 38% of those who reported that dismemberment had not taken place. All surplus parts were described to be identical to those of the victim, with some participants asserting the presence of matching birthmarks.
Additional research has been conducted by the Foundation since the discovery of SCP-L057. When its findings were compiled alongside those of the original study, it was determined that five arms, nine hands, and sixty-three fingers remain unaccounted for.