# Slap A Teacher Challenge

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.

## 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 app[5]. 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 hallways[2].

News outlets, teachers' unions, and school districts treated the warnings as an active threat even though no viral slapping videos ever appeared[1]. IDEA Carver College Preparatory School in San Antonio texted parents that any student attempting the challenge would be expelled and reported to police[1]. The Broward Teachers Union emailed members telling them to watch each other's backs and press charges against both the slapper and the person filming[3].

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 rival[4].

## 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 day[5].

The next morning, October 1, PopBuzz and Distractify ran stories treating the challenge as a real threat, and local news across the US followed[1][2]. Broward County's teachers' union sent a district-wide alert, and schools in Texas, Florida, and elsewhere warned parents individually[3]. 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 officials[4]. The Slap A Teacher Challenge was cited as one of the fabricated panics the campaign successfully placed.

## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is Slap A Teacher Challenge?
It was a rumored TikTok trend from September 2021 in which students supposedly slapped a teacher on the backside and filmed it for the app, though no real videos ever appeared[1].

### Where did Slap A Teacher Challenge come from?
The rumor started after Washington Post reporting later showed the entire campaign was seeded by PR firm Targeted Victory on Facebook's behalf to smear TikTok[4].

### What does Slap A Teacher Challenge mean?
The name referred to the alleged act of walking up to a teacher, slapping them, and posting the video, framed as October 2021's slot on a fake year-long calendar of school pranks[2].

### How do you use Slap A Teacher Challenge?
There is no format to actually use, since the challenge was a hoax with no genuine participation on TikTok; it's now referenced as an example of a planted moral panic about social media[4].

### Is Slap A Teacher Challenge still popular?
No. It was debunked in March 2022 when the Washington Post revealed that Facebook had paid Targeted Victory to plant the rumor as part of an anti-TikTok campaign[4].

## References
1. [https://www.popbuzz.com/internet/viral/tiktok-challenge-slap-a-teacher-october/](<https://www.popbuzz.com/internet/viral/tiktok-challenge-slap-a-teacher-october/>)
2. [https://www.distractify.com/p/slap-a-teacher-challenge-tiktok](<https://www.distractify.com/p/slap-a-teacher-challenge-tiktok>)
3. [https://www.local10.com/news/local/2021/09/30/broward-teachers-union-warns-educators-of-new-tiktok-challenge-to-slap-a-teacher/](<https://www.local10.com/news/local/2021/09/30/broward-teachers-union-warns-educators-of-new-tiktok-challenge-to-slap-a-teacher/>)
4. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/03/30/facebook-tiktok-targeted-victory/](<https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/03/30/facebook-tiktok-targeted-victory/>)
5. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/slap-a-teacher-challenge](<https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/slap-a-teacher-challenge>)

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