Victims may feel pressure to hide hurt feelings, says expert
⭐️HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW⭐️
- A trend called ‘flip the camera’ has gone viral the last few weeks on TikTok.
- It involves videos of people recorded in embarrassing ways without their consent.
- Many on the internet have called out the trend as cyberbullying.
- Read on to find out why an expert says it can be so harmful. ⬇️⬇️⬇️
The videos typically start the same way.
A group of teens asks someone — maybe in a hallway or in the school cafeteria — to take a video of them doing a dance for TikTok.
They ask the person to hold the phone backward, with the screen facing away from them, so that the dancers can see themselves dancing.
But midway through their dance, they click the flip the camera button without warning the person recording them, capturing them with a double chin, a confused expression or in some other embarrassing state.
Then — with or without that person’s consent — the video is posted to social media.
It’s called the “flip the camera” trend. These videos have been pulling millions of views on TikTok over the past few weeks, but also pushback from people who say it’s a form of cyberbullying.
So is it all in good fun, or is it harmful?
It all depends on the context, but one expert says there are things teens need to seriously consider before flipping that camera on someone.
“Before doing something like this, understand that it can be very hurtful and it is very hard to predict how hurtful it is going to be, even if that person tells you they’re OK with it.” – Matthew Johnson, director of education at MediaSmarts
Internet pushes back
After flip the camera videos went viral, videos of backlash to the trend have started pulling millions of views of their own.
TikTok user @nevaermind, for example, was one of the viral victims of the trend after other students flipped the camera on her.
But on Nov. 11, she called them out.
TikTok user @nevaermind spoke out after other students did the flip the camera trend on her. (Image credit: @nevaermind/TikTok)
She posted the original flip the camera video, then stitched a video of herself alone, looking devastated. “What did I do to deserve this?” she asked in the caption.
Some commenters on the video — which has more than 9.4 million views — started questioning the trend themselves.
“You literally go to my school…. [You] seem so nice and I’m so sorry they did that,” wrote user @khlobug_01. “Even if it’s a trend, it’s not OK.”
And user @gene.rolonnn wrote: “I’m so glad these TikTok ‘trends’ are being seen for what they are. Blatant bullying.”
Why this can be more harmful than you first think
Matthew Johnson, director of education at MediaSmarts, said he understands why it can be tempting to jump on trends like this.
“We see a lot of examples in the media where mean teasing is rewarded and presented as being funny,” he said. “It can seem like the attention you get from it is worth the harm it causes.”
And some people might not even recognize the potential for harm.
He said teasing is a common part of teen culture — particularly among boys — but because teens are still developing empathy, it can be hard to know when teasing becomes harmful.
“Everyone is different. Something that is mild teasing to you could, to someone who is a bit less confident, be really hurtful.”
Many on the internet are calling out the flip the camera trend as an example of cyberbullying. The victim’s face in the photo above has been blurred to avoid causing further harm. (Image credit: diorrsofii/TikTok)
Worse, you might not even know when someone is upset.
“We know that people who are really hurt often have a strong motivation to conceal it, because being a victim lowers your sense of status in a school.”
Johnson said that’s an important thing for teens to keep in mind, especially when it comes to the flip the camera trend.
That’s because victims may feel pressured to say yes when the person who flipped the camera on them asks if they can post the video online, because the victims don’t want to look weak or uncool.
Of course, Johnson also said that you should never put photos or videos of someone online without their consent.
You can’t control the internet
Jonhson said another issue with the trend is that, even if the prank goes over well with the victim in person and you get their consent to post the video, the internet is a much different place.
When you put it on the internet, you put the victim at risk of being cyberbullied — even if you try to limit who sees it.
“Once you post, people can always make copies, forward and share videos,” Johnson said. “You can never control the final audience once you put something online.”
Some of the flip the camera videos are more harmless, like this one of user @gsheashea and her dad. But many appear to be pranking people who aren’t comfortable with the situation. (Image credit: gsheashea/TikTok)
Once something is on the internet, it can also stay there for much longer than you expect, meaning someone who is hurt by the prank can continue to be hurt by it throughout their lives.
What victims (and bystanders) can do
If a victim wants to get their video pulled offline, the first thing they should do is to ask the person who uploaded it to take it down. Research shows that works most of the time, Johnson said.
If they refuse to take it down, there are some other options.
First, you can report the video to the social media platform for cyberbullying — although Johnson said it can be tricky to get a platform to remove someone else’s post, depending on the situation.
He said that you can also ask your school to step in, as schools in most provinces have the power to discipline students for things that happen on social media.
“We know many are reluctant to take this step for fear that it will escalate beyond their control, but it’s important to know that your school is there for you,” he said.
It can also be helpful to talk to a trusted adult, teacher or Kids Help Phone to help you through the process and to manage the painful emotions you may be having.
Bystanders can also help
If you see someone who is the target of the flip the camera trend, Johnson said you can let them know you don’t think what happened is OK, ask them how they’re doing, and ask if you can do anything to help.
But his most important message is to those considering doing the trend.
“Before doing something like this, understand that it can be very hurtful and it is very hard to predict how hurtful it is going to be, even if that person tells you they’re OK with it,” he said.
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