Slap A Teacher Challenge

2021hoaxdead

The Slap A Teacher Challenge was a rumored September 2021 TikTok trend where students supposedly walked up to teachers, slapped them on the backside, and filmed the assault. The challenge never actually appeared on TikTok, and in March 2022 the Washington Post revealed that Facebook had paid PR firm Targeted Victory to plant fake stories about the trend as part of a campaign to smear its rival TikTok.

hoax memesmoral panic memesdangerous challenge memesmisinformation memesclassroom memes

Overview

The Slap A Teacher Challenge was an alleged monthly TikTok trend in which students were supposed to walk up to a teacher or school staff member, slap them on the backside, and film it for the app5. Rumors said the challenge was scheduled for October 2021 as part of a year-long list of destructive school pranks, with November's supposed theme being kissing a friend's girlfriend and December's flashing hallways2.

News outlets, teachers' unions, and school districts treated the warnings as an active threat even though no viral slapping videos ever appeared1. IDEA Carver College Preparatory School in San Antonio texted parents that any student attempting the challenge would be expelled and reported to police1. The Broward Teachers Union emailed members telling them to watch each other's backs and press charges against both the slapper and the person filming3.

The whole thing was a manufactured moral panic. In March 2022, the Washington Post reported that Facebook had hired GOP-linked PR firm Targeted Victory to seed rumors of dangerous TikTok challenges in order to damage its main rival4.

How It Spread

On September 30, 2021, teacher and TikToker @2kute4wordz opened a warning video with a 2020 clip of a student slapping her teacher across the head, then threatened any kid who tried the same, pulling over 1.5 million views inside a day5.

The next morning, October 1, PopBuzz and Distractify ran stories treating the challenge as a real threat, and local news across the US followed12. Broward County's teachers' union sent a district-wide alert, and schools in Texas, Florida, and elsewhere warned parents individually3. No viral videos of students actually slapping teachers ever surfaced on TikTok.

The story came back in March 2022 when the Washington Post reported that Facebook, worried about TikTok's growth, had paid Targeted Victory to pitch dangerous-challenge stories to journalists and local officials4. The Slap A Teacher Challenge was cited as one of the fabricated panics the campaign successfully placed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Slap A Teacher Challenge

2021hoaxdead

The Slap A Teacher Challenge was a rumored September 2021 TikTok trend where students supposedly walked up to teachers, slapped them on the backside, and filmed the assault. The challenge never actually appeared on TikTok, and in March 2022 the Washington Post revealed that Facebook had paid PR firm Targeted Victory to plant fake stories about the trend as part of a campaign to smear its rival TikTok.

hoax memes moral panic memes dangerous challenge memes misinformation memes classroom memes

Overview

The Slap A Teacher Challenge was an alleged monthly TikTok trend in which students were supposed to walk up to a teacher or school staff member, slap them on the backside, and film it for the app5. Rumors said the challenge was scheduled for October 2021 as part of a year-long list of destructive school pranks, with November's supposed theme being kissing a friend's girlfriend and December's flashing hallways2.

News outlets, teachers' unions, and school districts treated the warnings as an active threat even though no viral slapping videos ever appeared1. IDEA Carver College Preparatory School in San Antonio texted parents that any student attempting the challenge would be expelled and reported to police1. The Broward Teachers Union emailed members telling them to watch each other's backs and press charges against both the slapper and the person filming3.

The whole thing was a manufactured moral panic. In March 2022, the Washington Post reported that Facebook had hired GOP-linked PR firm Targeted Victory to seed rumors of dangerous TikTok challenges in order to damage its main rival4.

How It Spread

On September 30, 2021, teacher and TikToker @2kute4wordz opened a warning video with a 2020 clip of a student slapping her teacher across the head, then threatened any kid who tried the same, pulling over 1.5 million views inside a day5.

The next morning, October 1, PopBuzz and Distractify ran stories treating the challenge as a real threat, and local news across the US followed12. Broward County's teachers' union sent a district-wide alert, and schools in Texas, Florida, and elsewhere warned parents individually3. No viral videos of students actually slapping teachers ever surfaced on TikTok.

The story came back in March 2022 when the Washington Post reported that Facebook, worried about TikTok's growth, had paid Targeted Victory to pitch dangerous-challenge stories to journalists and local officials4. The Slap A Teacher Challenge was cited as one of the fabricated panics the campaign successfully placed.

Frequently Asked Questions