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Going involuntarily viral

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vox.com

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newsletter@vox.com

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Fri, May 24, 2024 12:00 PM

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Filming strangers in public is more and more common, but ethically fraught. vox.com/culture CULTURE

Filming strangers in public is more and more common, but ethically fraught. vox.com/culture CULTURE   The greatest horror I can imagine is being the subject of a viral video that you didn’t know was being filmed. You’re just minding your own business doing whatever vaguely embarrassing thing humans do (eating, enjoying music, being a hater) and the next thing you know, millions of people on TikTok are laughing at your expense. Written so plainly, the gambit seems cruel. (It is!) But morality aside, content creators and normies alike are using the people around them as discourse fodder. My colleague Rebecca Jennings [tackles the ethical conundrum that is filming strangers for content](. On the one hand, phone recordings have illuminated racist incidents, like the murder of George Floyd. On the other, strangers online can construct any story they want about you based on a seconds-long clip they saw on social media. The piece is fascinating, detailing the legal actions afforded to subjects of these videos and the cultural norms that could hopefully change people’s behaviors away from public filming. —[Allie Volpe](, senior reporter Is it ever okay to film strangers in public? [hands holding up a phone taking video in a crowded space]( Getty Images The experience of realizing you are being surreptitiously filmed by a stranger is now a relatively common one, but this is how it happened for Mitchell Clark: The 25-year-old was working a shift at his Atlanta Target when someone propped up a phone nearby. “I thought it was for some dumb prank channel,” he says. It wasn’t until a young woman bent over directly in front of him, her dress short enough to expose her entire bare bottom, that he realized what was going on. The resulting video captures his shock — his eyes widen and his hands grasp his chest, agog — and later ended up on the OnlyFans model’s [Instagram]( account. “It made me look like a creep,” he tells me. The video was an extreme example of a trend where women secretly film men’s reactions to them, often in [the gym]( or in [public spaces](, either to shame the men for being inappropriate or to highlight the power of their own beauty — in Clark’s case, arguably both. But this time it caused an uproar: After Clark [made a video]( about how uncomfortable he felt, other accounts reposted and responded to it, highlighting the ways in which public filming culture had gotten out of control. (Vox was unable to reach the model for comment.) It’s been a decade and a half since social media made it possible for anyone’s camera phone video to go viral. But it’s [TikTok](, a platform where overnight fame is more achievable than ever, that has turned filming strangers in public into a controversial cottage industry. While [influencers]( on Vine, [YouTube](, and Instagram have long used passersby as unwilling background actors to gain clout, TikTok has also allowed those people to offer their sides of the story and actually get heard. This is, in part, because of editing tools like stitching or dueting, and also because you don’t necessarily need to have a large account in order to go viral on the app. Viewers are invested in watching all sides of the drama unfold. [Read the full story »]( The real reason it costs so much to go to a concert We can’t just blame Ticketmaster and scalpers. [Read the full story »]( Vanderpump Rules shows the limits of making money on reality TV On the financial anxiety dominating the post-Scandoval season. [Read the full story »](   [Become a Vox Member]( Support our journalism — become a Vox Member and you’ll get exclusive access to the newsroom with members-only perks including newsletters, bonus podcasts and videos, and more. [Join our community](   More good stuff to read today - [Bridgerton’s third season is more diverse — and even shallower — than ever]( - [Why AI art will always kind of suck]( - [Why are whole-body deodorants suddenly everywhere?]( - [The video where Diddy attacks Cassie — and the allegations against him — explained]( - [Why do Americans keep drinking raw milk?]( - Dopamine, explained](   [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [YouTube]( Manage your [email preferences]( or [unsubscribe](param=culture). If you value Vox’s unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring [contribution](. View our [Privacy Policy]( and our [Terms of Service](. Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Floor 12, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved.

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