Social Media "Influencers" : How Desperate To Be/Stay Relevant And Try To Get Famous / Monetized?

[MeatHookGekko]

Dulles Town Center Victim Was Making Prank Video When He Was Shot, Father Says

A 21-year-old man who was wounded in a shooting at Dulles Town Center was trying to make a prank video when he was shot, the victim's father told News4. The victim's father said his son was enlisting the public's help to make a video when someone got offended, pulled out a gun and shot him. The victim is part of a group called the Classified Goons, said his father, Jeramy Cook. The group has a sizable following on TikTok and YouTube.

Jeramy Cook says his son, Tanner, who fancies himself a budding comedian, was trying to make a video to build up his fanbase. He said Tanner approached the alleged shooter several times in the mall's food court, trying to get him to do some goofy things for the video, right before he was shot. Tanner remains in the hospital and has had several surgeries after a bullet pierced his stomach and liver.

The victim's father said if the shooter was upset or offended, there were other ways of handling the matter. "OK, you get offended, don't watch the show," Jeramy Cook said. "Move on, turn, go away, whatever, but you don't have to, because you're offended, you want to go beat somebody up or go run them over with your car or shoot them with your gun."


YouTuber Shot While Making Prank Video at Virginia Mall



Man shot, killed while filming “robbery prank” for YouTube, Nashville police say

A man was shot and killed Friday night in Nashville, Tenn., after pulling out a knife during a robbery prank intended for YouTube, police said. Officers were called to the parking lot of Urban Air Trampoline and Adventure Park around 9:20 p.m., according to a news release from Nashville police. Police said the victim, Timothy Wilks, 20, and his friend pulled out butcher knives and approached a group of people. One person in the group has been reportedly identified as David Starnes Jr, 23. Starnes told police he was unaware of the prank and shot Wilks in self-defense.

Homicide Unit detectives are currently investigating the self-defense claim and no charges have been filed against Starnes. Police say the investigation is continuing.


Man shot, killed while filming “robbery prank” for YouTube, Nashville police say



******


I want to be fair about this. I didn't grow up in the Tik Tok generation. Nor the common reality of big social media platforms and the potential to "monetize" your individual brand on the Internet and turn it into a quasi "career" I also understand that when I was growing up, that adults didn't understand the way the current "culture" worked, as I get older, I'm going to start to lose touch with the struggles that young people go through. I will never truly understand many of the nuances that my young nephew is going to have face when he grows older.

I also want to be honest in that, while I can get along with most people if I absolutely had to do it, I'm not a huge fan of the general public, don't like huge crowds, don't like most people period and prefer my personal privacy. In short, I have, like most people, plenty of problems of my own, I don't need other people's drama in my life as well. Not personal to anyone, just am too old and too tired to deal with it most of the time.

But what is up with so many people wanting to be a Tik Tok star these days? To have their own "brand"? I mean there is a level of hostility, meanness and instigation that go beyond basic socially accepted norms. I don't want to be the guy getting old shouting at everyone to get off my lawn. But something is wrong when it appears basic civility loses all sense of reality in exchange for a certain number of clicks, likes, subscribes and shares.

Why would you go to an airport and instigate that someone is trying to steal "your luggage"? In the post 9/11 era to boot.

Why would you sneak up on someone trying to buy groceries or household supplies at a big box store and put a bucket over their head?

Why would you crash a strangers wedding to try to get a viral video out of it? Then gaslight the people there and tell them they are taking it all too seriously.

Why would you approach strangers with a butcher knife as a "prank" and expect nothing bad to happen to you?

I think this is pretty interesting topic to discuss.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

Man Handcuffed After Attacking YouTube Prankster Who Takes Other People's Luggage

Social media pranks continue to become a growing trend for aspiring content creators, but one prankster found out that not everyone is aware of or accepting of a joke. YouTuber Kanel Joseph was attempting a prank at an airport, where he would act like he was stealing someone's luggage to get their reaction when the owner of the luggage attacked him and his cameraman. The video above shows the man grabbing Joseph by the hair as he approaches the cameraman.

The prankster calmly asks the enraged man to stop pulling his hair as he's dragged through the airport until security intervenes. Even after security gets involved, the man still attempts to lunge at the cameraman before the female security guard takes the man down, with the help of two others, and handcuffs him. After getting handcuffed, the police arrive to take the man away.... The apprehended suspect is reportedly facing charges of assault and battery, and resisting arrest. He could face up to three years in prison.

Man Handcuffed After Attacking YouTube Prankster Who Takes Other People's Luggage

 

[MeatHookGekko]

 

[MeatHookGekko]

 

[ZE_501]

I don't even know where to begin.

This is one of the sicknesses that lies at the intersection of a culture that's seemingly lost its way, technology that the human mind (particularly on the emotional level) doesn't generally seem ready for, and warped psyches -- developing minds that have been hijacked by an unhealthy environment.

Years ago I observed that Social Media was a big fat amplifier. It's the lowest common denominator at scale. I only hope it burns itself out.

 

[goatchumby]

Like a collector with 50+ active preorders, the lines between fantasy and reality are really weak with these folks

This is egocentrism at its finest. Performers used to have to earn their spotlight. Now they carry it around in their pocket.

 

[Sweet Rabbit]

That guy jerking off in Japan got done up by the cops the other day

 

[Wor-Gar]

I think the title says it all.

The majority of Earth's human population needs only TWO things in life:

1) Attention

2) Someone to follow

 

[Remembermyname]

Sad but probably true, I call them sheep.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

 

[MeatHookGekko]

California man sentenced to life in prison for killing 3 teens over doorbell prank

....A man who killed three teenage boys in California after they played a doorbell-ringing prank on him in 2020 was sentenced to life in prison on Friday.....faced life in prison without the possibility of parole after he was convicted by a jury in April of three counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder, according to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office.....The deadly crash happened in Riverside County on Jan. 19, 2020, as six teenage boys were having a sleepover that night. One of the boys was given a dare to approach Chandra’s home on Modjeska Summit Road.....After ringing .... doorbell, the teens quickly drove away in a 2002 Toyota Prius.....

.....chased down the six teens in his 2019 Infiniti Q50 and eventually caught up with them on Temescal Canyon Road near Squaw Mountain Road..... rear-ended and sideswiped their vehicle until they were forced off the road and slammed into a tree......reached speeds of 99 miles per hour at the time, officials said.....He then drove away from the scene and returned home without reporting the crash....testified at trial that one of the boys who rang his doorbell had exposed his buttocks before running away....claimed he followed the teens’ vehicle because he feared for his family’s safety....

California man sentenced to life in prison for killing 3 teens over doorbell prank

 

[MeatHookGekko]

3 teens charged with murder after plan to egg home turns deadly, deputies say

.....Three Georgia teenagers were charged with murder after their plot to egg a home.....In a statement, Sheriff Darrell Dix alleged that three teenagers — Sydney Maughon, 18, Jeremy Munson, 18, and McKenzie Davenport, 19 — were planning to vandalize Gilbert’s home by egging it when Gilbert saw them and went outside......“When Gilbert saw what they were doing to his residence, he came out of the house unarmed to confront them,” the sheriff’s office said. “The suspects ran back to the car, and as Gilbert approached them, Sydney Maughon, a backseat passenger in the car, produced a firearm and shot him multiple times. The suspects then drove away leaving Gilbert dead in the middle of Dobbins Mill Road.”

.....According to the sheriff’s office, investigators were able to find a cellphone number tied to one of the suspects and tracked it to a location in a neighboring county. When deputies arrived, they found a car that was believed to be used in the shooting. A gun was also recovered from the vehicle.....all three teenagers were charged with malice murder, battery and criminal trespassing. Maughon and Munson were also charged with aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.....all three teenagers are culpable because they went to Gilbert’s home “with the intent to commit a crime....”

3 teens charged with murder after plan to egg home turns deadly, deputies say


*******

Something I want to consistently point out is that there are good people in the world, and there are some really amazing people in this hobby overall. We just have to sift and sort through the chaff sometimes to find the gems. While I'm not here to only harp on the negative, I will say this thread also serves a bit of a PSA. Given the likely practical age range of people here, and now that some here are also parents themselves, IMHO it's a good idea to remember to be vigilant wherever you go and whatever you do in public. The world has changed since we all were the ages of the people involved in this article above. My take is we have to change with it.

It costs us nothing to be more attuned to our surroundings at all times. Good situational awareness is the best first hedge against other people who are completely nuts.

I'm grateful for this hobby. I'm also thankful for the many good people in it.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

 

[generalszabo]

Like a collector with 50+ active preorders, the lines between fantasy and reality are really weak with these folks

This is egocentrism at its finest. Performers used to have to earn their spotlight. Now they carry it around in their pocket.

Defo, I think if you're going to be a ****, you should accept what you get coming to you. These 'pranks' aren't even funny, they're just annoying

 

[Sassafras]

******


I want to be fair about this. I didn't grow up in the Tik Tok generation. Nor the common reality of big social media platforms and the potential to "monetize" your individual brand on the Internet and turn it into a quasi "career" I also understand that when I was growing up, that adults didn't understand the way the current "culture" worked, as I get older, I'm going to start to lose touch with the struggles that young people go through. I will never truly understand many of the nuances that my young nephew is going to have face when he grows older.

I also want to be honest in that, while I can get along with most people if I absolutely had to do it, I'm not a huge fan of the general public, don't like huge crowds, don't like most people period and prefer my personal privacy. In short, I have, like most people, plenty of problems of my own, I don't need other people's drama in my life as well. Not personal to anyone, just am too old and too tired to deal with it most of the time.

But what is up with so many people wanting to be a Tik Tok star these days? To have their own "brand"? I mean there is a level of hostility, meanness and instigation that go beyond basic socially accepted norms. I don't want to be the guy getting old shouting at everyone to get off my lawn. But something is wrong when it appears basic civility loses all sense of reality in exchange for a certain number of clicks, likes, subscribes and shares.

I think this is pretty interesting topic to discuss.

Far as I can tell, it's the end result of thinking you can make money fast, and without a lot of effort, IF you can gain some sort of following. Am so tired of YT vids asking me to subscribe, tho I guess the creators have to. I never followed the whole YT algorithm thing.

The other issue is the rampant problem IMO since Facebook and the concept of "friends". A lot of social norms fell e.g. calling customers by their first name instead of Mr, Ms. etc. and the instant access of the Internet by e-mail. A lot of people overshare. I've got no problem at all more or less telling people to back off in the social sense, stuff I never had to do before. Or reminding a customer service person I'm not their friend. Me having had contact with you doesn't mean we have a personal relationship, so don't use my first name.

Politeness goes a long way, and all those layers of courtesy. But the Internet IMO messed up a lot. Can't believe what many do or say online. It's like watching some sick but fascinating comedy.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

 

[posterguy]

some fool jumped into the Graceland pool recently......had it been the 70s then Presleys bodyguards wouldve kicked his ***. Some guy who took the hotel elevator was immediately attacked by his bodyguards back in the day when the elevator door opened

some idiots threw egg at me in GA once , thought they were throwing a rock as it was dark.......a kid was shot & killed there on halloween , the house owner got angry

 

[Sweet Rabbit]

A lot of people are trying to make the new Mustang relevant on the socials