Pranks cross the line

When we think of pranks, we think of harmless jokes that bring out our inner child and make us giggle. However, the video pranks that have been popularized by hundreds of famous YouTube stars have gone beyond funny tricks, in fact bordering harassment.

Many YouTube stars utilize the shock factor in order to stay interesting and popular. In doing so, these stars pull more and more distasteful pranks on random and unfortunate strangers.
For example, a Norwegian YouTube personality by the name FreddyFairHair decided to strip naked in various public places and attempt to get women’s numbers. He approached several women and even tried hugging one of them. He sexually harassed them and passed it off as a joke.
To make matters worse, he conducted these pranks in public parks and on busy street corners in broad daylight while there were families with children around.
Although his prank video disgusted me, the worst part was the comment section. I was appalled to find that the feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Most of the comments were commending him, saying things like “This guy’s awesome! No shame!” or “Wish I had the guts to do this.” Some comments even criticized some of the women for being offended, saying things like “She totally wanted him.” or “Those American girls are just mad because they’re not used to seeing a fit guy.”
This YouTuber alone boasts a cumulative view count of over 16 million. He is only one of many popular YouTubers that use these offensive and disrespectful pranks in order to achieve their 15 minutes of fame. While the stars’ videos are offensive at best, the fact that they get support from millions of people is just as disturbing.
These pranks glorify harassment and the violation of personal space. In addition, these types of pranks create a community of people that see breaking the law as being okay so long as it’s referred to as a prank.
Millions of people look up to these vile YouTube stars and aspire to become like them, pulling these pranks themselves and perpetuating this horrible trend.
People who are convicted of indecent exposure in the real world are guilty of a felony and risk imprisonment in state prison.
For instance, a man was arrested in September for exposing himself at an Alhambra park. The only real difference between this man’s actions and those of FreddyFairHair is the presence of a camera. It is not worth risking jail time and being permanently branded as a sex offender just for a few thousand views.
I urge all of my fellow peers to speak out against these YouTube personalities and to discourage these so-called pranks. YouTube stars will get the idea that they just aren’t funny when their viewers say so first.