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Grave cleaning videos are going viral on TikTok. Are they honouring the dead, or exploiting them?

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/edith-jennifer-hill-1018412">Edith Jennifer Hill</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/marina-deller-947925">Marina Deller</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a> Cleaning the graves of strangers is the latest content trend taking over TikTok. But as millions tune in to watch the videos, it’s becoming clear not all of them are created equal. Two grave-cleaning creators in particular seem to reside at opposite ends of the trend. One of the first accounts to gain popularity for grave cleaning was <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@ladytaphos">@ladytaphos</a>. This account is run by Alicia Williams, a Virginia resident who treats the graves with great dignity. Williams will often share the story of the person residing within, and acts with grace and kindness as she restores beauty to the <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@ladytaphos/video/7197894295641148714">graves</a>. On the other end of the spectrum is Kaeli Mae McEwen, or <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@_the_clean_girl">@the_clean_girl</a>, who leans into more clickbait-y tactics. McEwen is known for throwing a pink spiky ball through a graveyard and cleaning the grave it lands on. She also uses her videos to promote her own pink foamy cleaner (which at one point could be purchased via a link in her bio). <h2>Cleaning and death</h2> While Williams’ and McEwen’s videos may seem novel to some, death and cleaning have a long and varied relationship that spans time and cultures. Washing a loved one’s body before burial or cremation isn’t just practical – it’s a significant <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/washing-and-dressing-our-dead-the-movement-challenging-how-we-grieve-20230510-p5d794.html">ritual</a> that provides meaning during a period of grief. In certain cultures and religions it’s also a process of purification, or preparation for the afterlife. Much has been written about cleaning and clearing out the homes of deceased people. Family members often won’t agree on how to approach such a task. In his <a href="https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-grief-and-things-of-stone-wood-and-wool-136721">essay on death and objects</a>, author Tony Birch writes about his mother clearing out his grandmother’s house. “My mother decided that our first task after her death was to empty out her Housing Commission flat and scrub it clean,” Birch writes. He first laments the move, but later recognises the value of cleaning together before sorting – and treasuring – the items his grandmother left behind. Margaretta Magnuson’s 2017 book, <a href="https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/The_Gentle_Art_of_Swedish_Death_Cleaning/uW00DwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PT7&printsec=frontcover">The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning</a>, is a humorous and thoughtful introduction to the Swedish movement of döstädning. The book (and subsequent <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-series/the-gentle-art-of-swedish-death-cleaning">reality TV series</a>) has sparked various conversations on death and cleaning, and especially on cleaning before you yourself pass away so you don’t leave a mess for your loved ones. Grave cleaning can be seen as another continuation of caring for the deceased. People who decide to clean the graves of strangers may do so out of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/sep/04/how-gravetok-videos-of-cleaning-headstones-went-viral">respect</a>, or in an attempt to <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/alexalisitza/tiktok-woman-cleans-old-gravestones">give them “their name back”</a> (as names on graves become visible following the removal of debris). <h2>Two very different approaches</h2> Williams and McEwen are received quite differently by viewers. Anecdotally, viewers respond more positively to the calmer and more respectful cleaning videos by Williams, who takes time to explain the process while ensuring the correct products are used. Meanwhile, many find McEwen’s videos problematic and criticise her for not adhering to proper graveyard decorum. McEwen makes a spectacle of sites of mourning, such as by pretending to vacuum graves, replacing flowers placed by others and making jokes. Viewers also speculate the products she uses may cause damage to the graves. Perceived intent plays a role in how each creator’s content is received. While Williams focuses on respectfully restoring graves to their former glory, McEwen positions herself as the focus and merely uses the graves for content. <h2>A complex emotional object</h2> Similar to other funerary objects such as coffins and urns, graves are associated with both the person who died and the fact of their death. As such, they are emotionally complex objects that bring both strength and sadness to those left behind. But graves are unique also in that they are private objects of grief exposed in a public context. Anyone visiting the graveyard can view and interact with them. Does that make them “fair game” for content creators? Graves don’t just represent deceased loved ones. They can also act as stand-ins in their absence, becoming stone bodies of sorts. As sociologist Margaret Gibson describes in her book <a href="https://www.mup.com.au/books/objects-of-the-dead-paperback-softback">Objects of the Dead: Mourning and Memory in Everyday Life</a>, “death reconstructs our experience of objects”. “There is the strangeness of realising that things have outlived persons, and, in this regard, the materiality of things is shown to be more permanent than the materiality of the body,” she says. Caring for and cleaning graves can therefore be interpreted as caring for the deceased, by extending their existence through the materiality of their resting place. Psychological researcher <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1600910X.2018.1521339">Svend Brinkmann asserts</a> artefacts such as graves are “culturally sanctioned”, gaining “significance from a collective system of meaning”. In other words, we as a community create and uphold reverence for such items. This is partly why the desecration of graves is viewed as abhorrent. It is societally understood to be a desecration of the person themselves. It’s also why content creators must tread lightly. <h2>A reason for haunting?</h2> There are ways to interact with gravestones (and even create content) which acknowledge their complexity and connection to their owners. TikTok creator Rosie Grant (<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@ghostlyarchive?lang=en">@ghostlyarchive</a>) bakes recipes found on headstones and records the process. She has even met with the families of the deceased <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/defining-dishes-ghostly-archive-tiktok-b2414122.html">to make the recipes together</a> and learn more about the people behind the engraving-worthy food. However, randomly cleaning the graves of strangers is fraught territory – and rife with potential privacy issues. It isn’t clear whether McEwen seeks permission from loved ones before cleaning graves, but contextually this seems unlikely. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKkOS2GjCxk">Recent discussions</a> have also uncovered questionable editing in her videos. Some graves in her before-and-after videos have been edited to appear cleaner and to have their structure altered. McEwen’s pink foaming cleaner also appears to be a blue cleaner edited to appear pink, raising even more questions about intent and responsibility. While McEwen claims to be “honouring” lives by cleaning “final resting places”, the consensus from viewers is her actions are dishonourable. As one host <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKkOS2GjCxk">commented on a in podcast</a> discussing McEwen cleaning a baby’s grave while speaking in a kiddish voice: “F**k you, you’re going to get haunted.”<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/240553/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/edith-jennifer-hill-1018412">Edith Jennifer Hill</a>, Associate Lecturer, Learning & Teaching Innovation, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/marina-deller-947925">Marina Deller</a>, Casual Academic, Creative Writing and English Literature, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/grave-cleaning-videos-are-going-viral-on-tiktok-are-they-honouring-the-dead-or-exploiting-them-240553">original article</a>.

Caring

TikTok couple slammed for leaving toddlers unattended in cruise cabin

TikTok Influencers Matt and Abby Howard have been slammed online for their controversial parenting choice while on a family vacation. In a now deleted video, the couple explained that they had brought their sons Griffin, 2, and August, 1 on a family cruise, and they went to dinner without the boys, but monitored the room through FaceTime. "So we ended up taking them for 5 nights and it became apparent that they weren't enjoying it and therefore we weren't either," they said in the caption. "So THEN we switched our dinner time to AFTER their bedtime and FaceTimed the monitors while we ate." Abby noted that baby monitors "don't work on board unless you're only like 10 feet away", adding that their dinnertime solution worked out "much better for everyone" Social media users were quick to respond to their decision, with many highlighting the safety concerns. "They literally could not have gotten to them fast enough if anything had happened and I cannot stop thinking about that. It’s sickening," one wrote on Reddit. "It's literally common sense that you do not leave a baby alone unsupervised," another added. "The fact that they would so willingly leave their children in an unfamiliar environment completely alone is shocking," another added. "Are they seriously that f****** dumb? Do they not watch the news, have they not seen what happened to Madeline McCann?" a fourth wrote. Following the controversy, the couple released a video claiming that a family member was always with the children while they were at dinner, although they didn't clarify who. "We take our roles as parents extremely seriously and we love our children more than anything in the entire world, and we're very protective of our kids," Matt said in the video. "We had someone with our children at all times on this boat," he continued adding that the speculation surrounding them is "completely untrue". "I do want to clarify that we have not, would not, will not ever leave our children unattended. We would would never, ever want to put them in harms way in anyway," Abby added. She explained that her family would "tag team" to help the couple out with watching their children. Viewers were quick to speculate whether they were telling the truth, while others were glad they clarified. "Thanks for the clarification because it did come off like the boys were alone- context is everything," one wrote. "I hope this is the truth," another added. "For them to post about it like it's some genius parenting hack is just wild," a third wrote. Image: Instagram

Family & Pets

"My daughter was right": Gracious grandma praised for humble act

Watching your parents become grandparents is a beautiful experience, but it often comes with disagreements or differences in opinion in terms of how you are raising your kids. One grandma has gone viral for her wise words when it comes to navigating these differences. "If I don't agree with every little decision that my daughter makes for the baby, I usually don't say anything," TikTok user @mommom.maria, who frequently posts about being a grandma, shared recalled her most recent babysitting experience. "Sometimes I can't help myself, and when it came to this I couldn't help myself, I had to say something." She explained that her 13-month-old granddaughter has two bottles a day, one in the morning and one at night. "My husband and I were babysitting the other night and my daughter said to put her milk before bed in this," she said, holding up a sippy cup with a straw. The grandmother didn't think it was okay that her granddaughter was drinking out of a sippy cup that young, but admitted that it's not her decision to make. "I'm not the decision maker. I'm not the mum: I'm the Mum-Mum, the privileged Mum-Mum that gets to babysit her," she explained. She decided to respect her daughter's choices, and said that her granddaughter drank her milk with no issues. "So I guess my daughter was right, and that's really what I wanted to say to the other grandmothers: You don't have to agree, but you have to do it," she finished. Many have praised the grandmother for respecting her daughter's wishes, with the video gaining over 100k views. "Protect this sweet woman at all costs," commented one person. "Oh how I wish my MIL (mother in law) was like you," another added. "You are so emotionally mature about it. I'm so proud of you showing what respecting your children's right to parent looks like!" wrote a third. One woman also shared the way she approached parenting differences and replied, "I told my Mom and MIL this 'I'm not saying you're wrong with how you chose to do things with your kids. I just do things differently.' Helped a lot!" Images: TikTok

Family & Pets

Woman “bullied” on plane over budget seating trick

A young woman has recalled a flight from hell when she was “bullied” by a couple who were trying to utilise a seating hack that went viral on TikTok. The solo traveller took to Reddit to recount the story and ask social media users if she was in the wrong for her action. The woman began by saying she usually pays more to select her plane seat ahead of time, but a medical emergency on another plane had her waiting on standby and left with no option other than to sit in a middle seat. When she was finally able to board, she was greeted by a couple who had purchased both the window and aisle seats in a bid to have more space, utilising a travel “trick” that has been popular on TikTok. The method, which has been dubbed the 'poor man's business class', usually leaves travellers with an empty middle seat and more space, and few travellers opt to pick a middle seat. “When I got to my row the man and woman were chatting and sharing a snack... it was obvious they were together. I mentioned to the man that I'm in the middle, and he got up to let me in,” the unsuspecting traveller wrote on Reddit. “I asked them if they would prefer to sit together, I said I was totally okay with that. The woman reacted rudely to this and said ‘you're not supposed to be sitting here anyway’.” After noticing how the plane was full, she offered to show the pair her new ticket with the correct seat number on it. “She flicked her hand at my ticket and made a disgusted sound. I offered again if they wanted to sit together to which she didn't reply, her partner said it's okay and... made some small talk,” she continued. The man’s girlfriend then interrupted their conversation to ask,”'Did you use one of those third party websites to book your flight? It's so frustrating when people cheap out to inconvenience others.” The American woman explained that she had booked her flight directly and she had been placed on standby like everyone else and didn't choose the middle seat - she was assigned it. She then tried to keep the peace by refusing to engage with the furious woman. “I was so done with her attitude, I put my headphones on and attempted to do my own thing,” she explained. But the “entitled” girlfriend wasn't letting it go, as the woman explained, “This woman kept reaching over me and tapping her partner and trying to talk to him in a way that was super intrusive.” “I could tell even her partner was trying to engage her less so that she would hopefully stop, but she didn't.” “I think they tried to pull that tactic where they don't sit together on purpose...hoping no one will sit between them. But on full flights it doesn't work. And even so - it's not the other person's fault.” The traveller's post was met with hundreds of comments slamming the girlfriend’s behaviour, as one person wrote, “It's like a toddler having a tantrum.” “She was disappointed and a total a**hole. Gross entitled people,” another added. Another person applauded the traveller’s level-headed behaviour, writing, “Wow! You are my hero for keeping it classy - I’m afraid I would not have been as kind as you.” Image credits: Shutterstock

Travel Trouble

Young musician dies weeks after writing final song

Cat Janice has died aged 31 with her family by her side. The young musician, who had a large following on TikTok, had been battling cancer since January 2022 when doctors diagnosed her with sarcoma, a rare malignant tumour. She was declared cancer-free on July 22 that same year, following extensive surgery, chemo and radiation therapy. The mum-of-one was sadly re-diagnosed with cancer in June last year and despite fighting hard in the second round of her treatments, Janice told fans in January that her cancer "won" and that she "fought hard but sarcomas are too tough". Janice's family have announced her passing in a statement shared to her Instagram. "From her childhood home and surrounded by her loving family, Catherine peacefully entered the light and love of her heavenly creator," they said. "We are eternally thankful for the outpouring of love that Catherine and our family have received over the past few months." Before she died, Janice publicly announced that all her music would be signed over to her 7-year-old son, Loren, to support him in the future. Just weeks before her death, she released her final song Dance You Outta My Head in the hope it would spread "joy and fun". "My last joy would be if you pre saved my song 'Dance You Outta My Head' and streamed it because all proceeds go straight to my 7-year-old boy I'm leaving behind," she said, before the song was released. The song went viral, and took he number one spot in several countries and the number five spot on the Apple Itunes globally. Her family have said that the love she received for her final song, was unbelievable parting gift she could have ever received. "Cat saw her music go places she never expected and rests in the peace of knowing that she will continue to provide for her son through her music. This would not have been possible without all of you." Images: Instagram

Caring

Woman rejects $200k offer for her puppy

A woman has divided social media viewers after she claiming that she declined a stranger's $200k ($303,000 AUD) offer for her Doberman pinscher puppy. In the viral video, which has since racked up over 970,000 views, Alexis Elliott said: “someone offered us $200k for our puppy, and I told my husband, ‘absolutely f**king not’.” “Would you guys sell your dogs for $200k? Like, that is my baby!" the LA-based woman asked her followers. Many couldn't believe that she declined the offer. “It’s a crime to not accept 200k,” one wrote. “In this economy? Yes,” another commented. “Would run upstairs so fast and pack his bag,” a third joked. While some people were eager enough to give up their own dogs for $200,000, others agreed with Elliot and said that they would never give up their fur babies. “ABSOLUTELY NOT. The people saying yes should not have a dog tbh,” one viewer commented, adding: “That boy is my life.” <div class="embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Figtree, Roboto, 'Noto Sans Hebrew', 'Noto Kufi Arabic', 'Noto Sans JP', sans-serif; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;"><iframe class="embedly-embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 0px; border-style: initial; vertical-align: baseline; width: 580px; max-width: 100%; outline: none !important;" title="tiktok embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2Fv2%2F7308537421770116395&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40itsalexiselliott%2Fvideo%2F7308537421770116395%3Flang%3Den&image=https%3A%2F%2Fp16-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com%2Ftos-useast5-p-0068-tx%2Ff7435052bbf14b62a0c22bb295962a0f_1701651485%7Etplv-dmt-logom%3Atos-useast5-i-0068-tx%2FoMfzRS5SbCDFYrMIAQZA7AAlb2PgflRLDERaED.image%3Fx-expires%3D1702508400%26x-signature%3Di2tT0G7gwHGCVFhMDi4EPSvcPUI%253D&key=59e3ae3acaa649a5a98672932445e203&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> “A lot of you in these comments don’t deserve a dog,” another slammed. “Omg never. The thought of my dog being confused and feeling abandoned breaks my heart,” a third commented, while another user added that they wouldn't sell their dog even if they were offered one million dollars. One sceptic added: “Nobody offered you 200k for a dog, people with that kind of money are mostly financially smart. And you did not birth it." A few others came to Elliot's defence and said that it had happened to them in the past. “Someone offered me 100k for my dog. He was a pretty well-off athlete. Not everyone is smart with their money,” one commented. “I had a lady offer us $1M for our dog, and when we laughed she said, ‘No seriously, make me an offer, I’ll pay it’,” another claimed. Images: TikTok

Money & Banking

"This is insane": Woman's intense hotel safety routine divides audiences

A woman has gone viral for the elaborate routine she undergoes every time she checks into a new hotel room. Victoria posted a TikTok of her intense seven-step routine that she undertakes when staying in a hotel, with the video quickly racking up over 14 million views. In the now-viral clip, Victoria starts off by putting the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the doorknob and locking it from the inside. Then, she blocks the peephole with a tissue, jams a washcloth into the deadbolt to "close the gap" and rolls up a bath towel behind the handle to stop anyone opening the door. She also positioned an ironing board against the door to stop it from being able to open, and then used a clothes hanger to clip everything together. After going through the seven step routine, Victoria's comment section was flooded with messages as the video prompted a mixed response. "By the time I do all that, it's morning again," one user wrote, while another simply said, "This is insane." While many of the comments were quick to judge how extensive the safety routine is, others shared their own different security preferences. "I take two portable locks, and a mini camera that links to my phone for when I'm out," one said. However, one person pointed out that Victoria's set-up was a bit of a hazard, saying, "And now imagine trying to get out of that in the dark in a fire in the middle of the night." Another said they had "never stayed in hotels where I felt so unsafe," adding, "Is it an American thing? I am genuinely curious." Image credits: TikTok

Travel Trouble

Pilot praised for revealing simple trick to cope with severe turbulence

A pilot has shared his simple "water bottle trick" for anxious passengers to cope with turbulence in the air. Sydney-sider Jimmy Nicholson and his wife Holly recently shared a video of their bumpy flight with "horrible" turbulence that went viral on TikTok, after Jimmy shared his tips on how to cope with the anxiety. In the video, his wife was filmed hyperventilating, and at one point even pulled out a sick bag. The couple held hands as other passengers were heard screaming during the wild turbulence. “So we’re at the back of the plane so it’s worse here," Jimmy, who looked more calm than most passengers, said in the clip. “It’s not comfortable, probably some of the worst I’ve been in. Could be widespread storms so pilots just have to pick their path of least resistance and go through it so nothing to worry about. “Planes are built to withstand way worse. Not fun evidently, but completely fine. “I’m a pilot and actually fly this aircraft type (Airbus). Here’s why you have nothing to worry about.” For those terrified of turbulence, Jimmy suggested looking at the water inside an upside down water bottle. “Water bottle trick: The water isn’t moving much, is it?” he said. <div class="embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important;"><iframe class="embedly-embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important; width: 603px; max-width: 100%;" title="tiktok embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2Fv2%2F7272043055874723073&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40jimmy_nicholson%2Fvideo%2F7272043055874723073%3F_r%3D1%26_t%3D8fD3XY38vB4&image=https%3A%2F%2Fp16-sign-sg.tiktokcdn.com%2Fobj%2Ftos-alisg-p-0037%2FoM6n8BXn3ENnHuqtQEMUDb4jUe6fkgAi0BORgF%3Fx-expires%3D1693292400%26x-signature%3DrKGHV84h94FBzJrVu4RsUV8upK0%253D&key=5b465a7e134d4f09b4e6901220de11f0&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> He added that if the water appears to be moving gently in the water bottle, then the turbulence feels worse than it actually is. “Remind yourself it’s completely normal. The plane isn’t going to fall out of the sky,” he said. The pilot suggested turning on the air conditioning and looking out the window to calm your nerves. The video ended with passengers clapping after they rode out the turbulence, and the TikTok has been viewed over 2.4 million times, with many thanking Jimmy for his tips. “This helps so much! We need more pilots to post about the stuff the rest of us think will be the last minutes of our lives,” one wrote. “Thank you for explaining this. I’m an anxious flyer and seeing you talk about it has helped," commented another. “Thank you for this video. I saved it and going to watch it in my flights when I am frightened," wrote a third. Images: TikTok/ Instagram

Travel Trouble

Man fakes own death to teach his family a tough life lesson

A Belgian TikToker has become the subject of the internet’s scorn after playing a prank on the loved ones and mourners gathered to bid him farewell at what they believed to be his funeral. They were under the assumption that the service was being held for the recently-departed David Baerten - their 45-year-old friend who was not, it turns out, dead after all. Instead, Baerten had devised a plan with his wife and children to trick everyone into believing he’d passed on, all so that he could teach them a ‘valuable’ lesson in the importance of staying in touch. In a bid to make Baerten’s friends and followers believe the lie, one of his daughters even posted to social media about his passing, writing “rest in peace Daddy. I will never stop thinking about you. “Why is life so unfair? Why you? You were going to be a grandfather, and you still had your whole life ahead of you. I love you! We love you! We will never forget you.” The ‘funeral’ was held near Liege for the TikToker - who uses the name Ragnar le Fou for his social media antics - with his family and friends coming together for what they thought was a final farewell. But as they prepared for that difficult task, things took a sharp turn. Baerten, who had been alive the entire time, descended in a helicopter with a camera crew in tow to surprise them all. In a video later shared to social media, he could be heard telling them “cheers to you all, welcome to my funeral.” Another user - who was present at the time - shared a clip of Baerten in the arms of his sobbing loved ones, while others took the opportunity to complain about the entire “joke”. <iframe style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; display: block; font-family: proxima-regular, PingFangSC, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; text-align: center; background-color: #ffffff; width: 605px; height: 740px; visibility: unset; max-height: 740px;" src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7243399474553425179?lang=en-GB&referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailymail.co.uk%2Fnews%2Farticle-12190705%2FMan-fakes-death-arrives-funeral-helicopter-teach-family-lesson.html&embedFrom=oembed" name="__tt_embed__v11218062736010092" sandbox="allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-scripts allow-top-navigation allow-same-origin"></iframe>They were complaints that continued online, as the videos gained traction and many raced to condemn him for the heartless stunt. “Really shocking, it should be punishable by law!” one user declared. “I'm shocked,” another said, before asking how he’d been able to do that to those close to him. “He wanted to see who would be there with his eyes,” one said, “what narcissism”. Someone else agreed, noting that “you really have to be full of yourself to do such a thing.” The feedback was so strong that Baerten was forced to explain his actions, claiming that “what I see in my family often hurts me. I never get invited to anything. “Nobody sees me. We all grew apart. I felt unappreciated. That’s why I wanted to give them a life lesson, and show them that you shouldn’t wait until someone is dead to meet up with them.” And while he is yet to share his own professional footage from the day, his plan had worked. “Only half of my family came to the funeral,” he said. “That proves who really cares about me. Those who didn’t come, did contact me to meet up. “So in a way I did win.” Images: TikTok

Family & Pets

Wes Anderson has an obsessive, systematic repetition of stylistic choices. He’s perfect for this TikTok meme

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alex-munt-1380279">Alex Munt</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-technology-sydney-936">University of Technology Sydney</a> Iconoclastic film director Wes Anderson <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sdt0oam6O1o">says of his films</a>: <blockquote> I always feel like any character from one of my movies could walk into another one of the movies and be at home there. </blockquote> With the premiere of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FXCSXuGTF4">Asteroid City</a> at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival next week, fans have been doing just that – walking themselves into faux Anderson movies. TikTokers are creatively “Wes-Andersonifying” their everyday lives: <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@keithafadi/video/7221582114880294150">at lunch</a>, <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@taramilktea/video/7226286920093977857?q=wes%20anderson%20challenge&t=1683337148719">at the hotel pool</a> or <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@hilakleinh3/video/7225644281799691563?q=wes%20anderson%20challenge&t=1683337148719">at the bookstore</a>. The TikToks are all set to a score by Alexandre Desplat from The French Dispatch (2021). <iframe id="tc-infographic-855" class="tc-infographic" style="border: none;" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/855/b970b886fa15cd22f469e5441d15262ddaa1d2c8/site/index.html" width="100%" height="400px" frameborder="0"></iframe> It’s fun to see Anderson’s film style rolled out across diverse cultural and geographic borders. This syncs with the filmmaker’s affinity for global cinema. He draws inspiration from the films of Yasujirō Ozu, Satyajit Ray, Jean Renoir, Jean-Luc Godard, Francois Truffaut and Jacques Rivette – to name just a few. For Tiktok’s Anderson fans, here’s a “<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@andyyongfilms/video/7227440401572039938">How To</a>” by @andyyongfilms which shows a recipe for the film style: a title card (Futura font, with typewriter effect), symmetrical compositions, bright coloured or pastel outfits, retro props, an overhead shot plus a “<a href="https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/swish-pan-whip-pan-definition-film/">whip-pan</a>” camera movement. A few of the TikToks are highly polished, clearly from creators with a film education, such as <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@qmike/video/7223410519741418757">The British Dispatch</a>. <iframe id="tc-infographic-856" class="tc-infographic" style="border: none;" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/856/3ed36e627f542ded4bb2f6244eb11b5a4b4a1626/site/index.html" width="100%" height="400px" frameborder="0"></iframe> <h2>Reimagining a film style</h2> The Anderson-inspired TikToks are playful ruminations on the question of “film style” today. Stanley Kubrick once said a film director is a “<a href="https://craigberry93.medium.com/stanley-kubrick-at-the-design-museum-4e79b3c11af9">taste machine</a>”, which Anderson revels in to excess. Symmetry within the frame is perhaps the most obvious element of the Anderson film style and one easy to replicate in the TikToks. With an obsessive devotion to staging scenes in symmetry, Anderson breaks the “<a href="https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-the-rule-of-thirds/">rule of thirds</a>” for visual composition. In contrast, he pins his actors dead centre as shown in this <a href="https://vimeo.com/89302848">video essay</a> by Kogonada. <figure><iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/89302848" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Working with his regular cinematographer Robert Yeoman, Anderson uses planar compositions to create graphic cinema which shares an affinity with illustration and painting. His “planar” approach to staging means the camera remains perpendicular to the subject, which the rapid whip-pan camera movements maintain within a shot. Anderson stages his actors across the frame – like garments on a clothesline – and in depth. You can see this in the image from Asteroid City above. This staging style is a departure from the mainstream visual style of film and television today which situates the camera at oblique angles to the actors, enhancing the layers of foreground, midground and background – closer to the way we see and experience the world. <iframe id="tc-infographic-857" class="tc-infographic" style="border: none;" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/857/4a449631c65d123c2342e08df14cd09f3b6d79a4/site/index.html" width="100%" height="400px" frameborder="0"></iframe> In contrast, Anderson’s approach calls out the artificiality of cinema. He recalls historical film styles from early cinema theatricality to the pop-art cinema of the late 1960s, for example in the films of the late Jean-Luc Godard. Colour is another aspect of Wes Anderson’s visual style, which spills across the TikToks. Like a handful of directors today, he still shoots on film (16mm and 35mm) but now uses digital tools to <a href="https://musicbed.com/articles/filmmaking/cinematography/robert-yeoman-asc-on-shooting-wes-andersons-the-french-dispatch">grade the colour</a> of the images. The Euro-pastels from The Grand Budapest Hotel resurface in American shades for Asteroid City. <iframe id="tc-infographic-858" class="tc-infographic" style="border: none;" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/858/d333cb73c1d0b0fdb4ca1f8d48313a013754f2ec/site/index.html" width="100%" height="400px" frameborder="0"></iframe> <h2>Where to next?</h2> As a system in and of itself, the film style of Anderson is ripe for TikTok due to its boldness, clarity and repetition of techniques. Film style operates at the level of the shot. We might recall signature shots such as Hitchcock’s “vertigo effect” (where the camera lens zooms into a subject as the camera moves away), Scorsese’s tracking shots, Nolan’s close-up shots of hands or Tarantino’s point-of-view shots from inside a car boot. But these are isolated shots rather than Anderson’s obsessive, systematic repetition of stylistic choices within each film and across his oeuvre. On TikTok some shots are easier to craft that others, as @astonmartinf1 details in his <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@jllacar/video/7226811816553270571?q=wes%20anderson%20challenge&t=1683337148719">analysis</a> of the Wes Anderson Trend, noting the omission of camera movement in many of the videos which is a defining aspect of his film style proper. <iframe id="tc-infographic-859" class="tc-infographic" style="border: none;" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/859/f9767494a7a94dd0475e121fc36513afcc110279/site/index.html" width="100%" height="400px" frameborder="0"></iframe> In filmmaking, moving the camera is often expensive, separating the amateur from the professional. Anderson’s tracking shots are only feasible within an industrial filmmaking process. While the TikToks may be highly creative, they are made with slim resources a world away from the film budgets of Anderson, who enjoys Medici-like support <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/reliable-source/wp/2015/01/23/mysterious-d-c-mogul-steve-rales-is-behind-oscar-nominated-pic/">from US billionaire Steven Rales</a>. Saying this, there are other aspects of the Wes Anderson style the TikToks could hijack on a budget, such as playfulness with the image aspect ratio and slow-motion photography. Aspect ratio is the relationship between the width and height of an image. TikTok is 9:16, an inverted ratio to our widescreen TVs. As part of his film style, Anderson uses the Classical Hollywood ratio of 4:3 seen in <a href="https://youtu.be/dvubfl-qeC8">The French Dispatch</a>. Both ratios are designed for people (all those selfies) over landscapes, so creative opportunities here for TikTokers. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dvubfl-qeC8?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Anderson is also a fan of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRGqeHIItY8">slow-motion</a> to accentuate key dramatic moments in his films. Today’s smartphones shoot “slo-mo” well, and using TikTok and other basic editing apps the user can apply speed effects to their footage. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yRGqeHIItY8?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> And as generative AI representations of film style wash across social media there’s a new set of questions altogether. Here’s <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CqxBkJnvPRa/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY%3D">Harry Potter as directed by Wes Anderson</a> created by @panoramachannel with AI software Midjourney. But that’s another conversation. <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alex-munt-1380279">Alex Munt</a>, Associate Professor, Media Arts & Production, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-technology-sydney-936">University of Technology Sydney</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/wes-anderson-has-an-obsessive-systematic-repetition-of-stylistic-choices-hes-perfect-for-this-tiktok-meme-204803">original article</a>. Images: Searchlight Pictures

Movies

How beauty filters like TikTok’s ‘bold glamour’ affect tweens using social media

<a href="https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a43203022/tiktok-bold-glamour-filter/">TikTok’s new “bold glamour” filter</a> “enhances” physical features in a way that makes it difficult to distinguish whether someone is using a filter or not, despite its airbrushing qualities. Unlike its predecessors, this filter allows movement through an AI feature with the filter remaining fixed on when, for example, a hand crosses the face, with fewer glitches. Users could be left comparing their unfiltered appearance with their “perfect” filtered self. They may start to develop unrealistic goals of perceived physical perfection that affect their self esteem. Although the terms of service for most social media platforms require users to be at least 13, a significant number of “tweens” (children between the ages of nine and 12) <a href="https://www.ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/media-literacy-research/childrens/children-and-parents-media-use-and-attitudes-report-2022">now have a social media profile</a>. Online safety lessons in schools <a href="https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Childrens-Commissioner-for-England-Life-in-Likes-3.pdf">tend to concentrate</a> on physical risk and predatory behaviour rather than emotional risks that children may encounter, as these may not be as apparent or experienced by adults. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> I am old enough and tough enough that filters don’t have an impact on me. My face tells the story of my life and I know its value; I can (mostly) look at who I am with love and acceptance. But if I had had access to Tiktok’s Bold Glamour as a kid, I would have been destroyed. <a href="https://t.co/USjFcLJkoh">pic.twitter.com/USjFcLJkoh</a> — Rebecca Seal (@RebeccaSeal) <a href="https://twitter.com/RebeccaSeal/status/1640275766100279296?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 27, 2023</a></blockquote> The <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1461444819873644">damaging effect of “filters”</a> (digital image effects that alter a person’s appearance) is less commonly taught. <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/KXDECXZB3CVNZNDHNURF/full?target=10.1080/03004279.2022.2095416">In my research</a>, I presented eight focus groups with activities to generate discussions with children of 10 and 11 years of age who were in their final year of primary school. One of the activities was related to the use of filters. Participants were given a set of photographs of people using filters on the social media site Snapchat and were asked questions such as: “How are these different from how they look in real life?” and “why do people use these filters?” The results demonstrated a clear and distinct gender divide. The boys said they used filters for fun and entertainment, favouring dog ears and exaggerated tongues to “make people laugh”. The girls used filters to create an idealised image that conformed to beauty ideals and for validation in the form of likes and comments. One girl, Samantha, said: “[filters] make you look perfect and flawless”. Another explained: “I like putting filters on because it doesn’t show my birthmark at all. It takes the blemishes off my face”. Similarly, tween Mia explained: “when you put a filter on, it makes your skin tone better and it covers up any spots or like any bruises and stuff that you feel insecure about in yourself.” My findings suggest that girls are internalising and aspiring to the beauty ideals that they are consuming via social media. There is a pressure to adopt a polished, physical appearance through filters, which may have <a href="http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/id/eprint/82913/3/__smbhome.uscs.susx.ac.uk_dm50_Desktop_Jaynes%20V.pdf">emotional repercussions</a>. <h2>‘Beauty isn’t everything’</h2> I also used collaging as an activity for exploring individual experiences. One child, Sophie, chose to show a binary depiction of herself as two halves. On the social media side, she used lots of different animal prints in triangles to show that you can be lots of different things and there are lots of different parts of yourself. She explained that the patterns she had chosen looked unnatural, unlike the more realistic filters online. Because (like other females in the study) she felt that there is an expectation for girls to look a certain way, Sophie also wrote “no one is perfect” on her collage. For the girls in my research, there was a sense that self expression was strongly linked to appearance, with a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26612721/">pressure to adhere</a> to certain perceived physical ideals. In her collage, Karen discussed at length how social media can be an augmented reality and can emphasise feelings of self consciousness linked to physical appearance. The characters drawn on her collage show a “real-life” self that had no filter, which “makes her sad” and a “filter self” which used make up and filters to enhance her appearance and made her happy. She also emphasised the feelings of negative self-esteem that viewing filtered images could have by saying, "People try and make themselves look beautiful and at the end it may really disappoint them." <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1461444819871669?journalCode=nmsa">Similar research from 2020</a> also concluded that girls tend to replicate “female” cues popularised through social media patterns, such as exaggerated lips and flawless skin. Although my research specifically focused on Snapchat, other social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram also encourage enhancing appearance through filters. Beauty filters reinforce the message that wearing makeup, looking a certain way and conforming to beauty ideals, is the desired physical state for women. Isabel had a strong message for girls in her collage: “be your own person and stop comparing yourself to others”. The widespread use of filters is certainly not facilitating this message and it is important that the emotional repercussions of using these appearance altering tools – as well as continually seeing them in social media feeds – is addressed. Open discussions could help educate girls to learn that these unattainable physical aspirations do not represent reality. Image credits: Shutterstock This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-beauty-filters-like-tiktoks-bold-glamour-affect-tweens-using-social-media-203383" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>.

Beauty & Style

93-year-old grandma shares her blunt dating advice with the world

A 93-year-old woman from the United States has reached viral heights on social media with her frank dating advice for singles around the world - particularly when it comes to which men she thinks it best to avoid. In a series she calls ‘Red Flags for Guys’, Lillian Droniak has educated - and entertained - her audiences, warning them off of everyone from those who won’t open doors to those who won’t provide regular compliments, don’t have soup on hand, and don’t like bingo. In a later entry, she expanded on her own list, declaring that those who lie about their height, those who are water signs, anyone with a name starting with the letter J, plays golf, and don’t like cats are major red flags in the romantic department. “If he doesn't like bingo, I don't date him because I love bingo,” she explained. “If he doesn't keep enough soup for me in the refrigerator. I always like soup and eat soup … if he doesn't call me pretty all the time, I don't want anything to do with him.” <div class="embed" style="font-size: 16px; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important;"><iframe class="embedly-embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 0px; border-style: initial; vertical-align: baseline; width: 620.262px; max-width: 100%; outline: none !important;" title="tiktok embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2Fv2%2F7187092528930327850&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40grandma_droniak%2Fvideo%2F7187092528930327850%3Flang%3Den&image=https%3A%2F%2Fp16-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com%2Fobj%2Ftos-useast5-p-0068-tx%2F0185552c26ef45e9a4155e25fdc88e95_1673375409%3Fx-expires%3D1680606000%26x-signature%3D2Bbvh8va4bNkeTSlql8fJ3xRfnU%253D&key=59e3ae3acaa649a5a98672932445e203&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> As Lillian told Good Morning America of her decision to launch her account, she gives her advice because she’s already been through it, and that the next generation “are maybe too young to think about it. “I was bashful when I was young. And now I’m too much trouble sometimes.” And while Lillian is happy to dish out her advice, it isn’t without some personal experience. The grandmother has also been open with her followers about her own journey back into the realm of dating, even sharing a clip of her preparing for an upcoming date after 25 years without embarking on one. “My first date in 25 years and he's going to pick me up in 20 minutes,” she said. “I'm getting nervous now. I met him at bingo and that's the way it goes. “He's really handsome and I couldn't say no ... I might kiss him, you never know but I'm going to still put lipstick on just in case.” "If he doesn't like it, he could leave,” she explained, after showcasing her outfit for the camera, “all I want is a free dinner. “I'm not even going to bring my wallet or my purse. I'll let you know how it goes.” <div class="embed" style="font-size: 16px; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important;"><iframe class="embedly-embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 0px; border-style: initial; vertical-align: baseline; width: 620.262px; max-width: 100%; outline: none !important;" title="tiktok embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2Fv2%2F7197847511887858986&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40grandma_droniak%2Fvideo%2F7197847511887858986%3Flang%3Den&image=https%3A%2F%2Fp16-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com%2Fobj%2Ftos-useast5-p-0068-tx%2F3958e1d1760c44539a23ef404b267a18_1675879484%3Fx-expires%3D1680606000%26x-signature%3DkHJqxjdpR2WgDEE6KGU%252FWFxlSWw%253D&key=59e3ae3acaa649a5a98672932445e203&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> Unfortunately, it wasn’t destined to work out for Lillian and her would-be partner, as she later returned to inform everyone that she “just got back from my date and it was no good. “He didn't even look at my outfit and say that it looks pretty. He was rude to the waiter, he was just a rude person. He didn't even hold the door for me like a gentleman should. “Bottom line he wasn't a gentleman, not my type. And he was shorter than me.” Images: TikTok

Relationships

Mum breaks down after people make fun of her baby’s name

A tearful mum-fluencer has taken to TikTok to call out the “cruel” adults making fun of her son’s name. Liana Jade and her partner Connor Darlington often post videos about their lifestyle, pregnancy and parenting, racking up over 2.7 million followers on Youtube. The couple have an eight-month-old son, with an unusual name that is meaningful to them- Koazy, pronounced “cosy”. Jade was minding her business when it was brought to her attention that people had mentioned her son’s name in another influencer’s video. In an episode of The Unplanned Podcast hosted by US couple Matt and Abby Howard, the pair discussed unusual baby names and said that quirky choices for baby names in 2023 were becoming “ridiculous”. They also mentioned that it’s not a great idea to name your child something quirky, especially when they become adults. Although they didn’t mention Koazy’s name specifically, the people in their comment section were more relentless, as they began ripping at Koazy’s name. Visibly upset, Jade posted her own TikTok and explained why she chose that name. “People have said we called him Koazy because he was cosy in the womb,” she said. “But no. It was a name we already had and as I was getting so heavily pregnant, people were saying ‘he’s so cosy in your belly’. “It confirmed to us that is what we should name him... we were like ‘Oh my God, it’s meant to be’.” Jade also mentioned that she understood Koazy’s name wasn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea and that “everyone is entitled to their own opinion”. “But it’s just different when there’s this comment section open on such a big influencer’s video of people, fully grown adults, just sat there slandering my baby’s name. “I think it’s quite cruel – and if I had posted that video personally, I think I would have been very mindful of who was being named and how that can have an effect on other people,” she said. Jade’s <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@lianajadee/video/7209646914298449158" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TikTok</a> has since gone viral with over 6.8 million views, and fans have supported her right to name her child whatever she liked. “Koazy is a lovely name,” one person wrote. “Everyone has an opinion, but a name is personal to the parents who chose it and shouldn’t be judged by anyone else. Stay strong,” commented another. The Howards have since turned the comments off their podcast. Image: Instagram, TikTok

Family & Pets

"Back to the kitchen": Granny Guns flexes down at online trolls

A body-builder granny has hit back at trolls after showcasing her killer biceps online. The TikTok star, 62, shows herself pumping iron, and doing various workouts on her account, with nasty individuals leaving comments saying she belongs in the kitchen. The 62-year-old enjoys making TikTok fitness videos, and she’s proved to be extremely successful online, having just shy of 800,000 followers. In one video, the granny is pumping iron at the gym. The video then cuts to her dancing around with a tray of homemade cookies, which she says is how she acts “any other time”. However, trolls online labelled her as just a woman made for the kitchen, and that’s when the biceps came out. <div><iframe title="tiktok embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2Fv2%2F7208386374041423146&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%4065_strong%2Fvideo%2F7208386374041423146%3Flang%3Den&image=https%3A%2F%2Fp16-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com%2Fobj%2Ftos-useast5-p-0068-tx%2F632c57901f47459e97728aea3dbe7729_1678333249%3Fx-expires%3D1678683600%26x-signature%3DQUziUnUI1Gk%252FIjO45MfLA8OhWNk%253D&key=59e3ae3acaa649a5a98672932445e203&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> The granny made a video where she threw shade at a few hate comments such as “women are weak” or “back to the kitchen”. The video then cuts to her friends lifting weights in a show of strength. The gym granny was showing off a tough move at the bicep curl machine. As she pulled the bar to her chest, her biceps flexed to reveal some serious muscle. She captioned her TikTok, “For all my fellow female fitness lovers”. Fellow users flocked to the comments to show their support. “I have a crush on everyone,” one user said. Another exclaimed: “I love this! And all the amazing women in this video!” “I love you grandma”, a third gushed. To which the granny replied, “Love you back”. Image credit: TikTok

Body

Mum speaks out after reaction to cling wrap video

<em style="color: #212529; font-family: -apple-system, 'system-ui', 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif, 'Apple Color Emoji', 'Segoe UI Emoji', 'Segoe UI Symbol', 'Noto Color Emoji'; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bolder; box-sizing: border-box;">Warning: This article contains disturbing content which some readers may find distressing. A TikTok influencer said her son was temporarily taken from her home by child protection authorities after she <a style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;" href="https://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/mum-slammed-for-cruel-cling-wrap-prank" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted a video</a> of her husband pushing the child around while he was swaddled from the neck down in cling wrap. The mum, Savannah Glembin, who has 1.1 million followers on TikTok, appeared emotional as she announced in a clip that authorities took her son, Gunner, away following the initial video. “Gunner has been taken from us until CPR can evaluate our home because I posted a video of my husband and son playing," she said. The video of the incident sparked concern among TikTok users, Gunner, who appears to be about two years old, was tightly wrapped in cling wrap while being moved around by his father, Hank. Savannah defended their actions in the video, saying it was “just a funny thing Hank did because Gunner was getting into the stove that day and tried putting a fork in a socket”. Several TikTok users commented how they were left feeling uncomfortable and disturbed by the video, which has since been taken down, with one user @auntkaren0 reposting the video, calling it “feels like abuse”. At one point the boy is placed standing on the bed before he falls forward onto his knees, unable to move his arms as he’s constrained by the cling wrap. “He’s a worm”, his father joked. “If you have a grumpy toddler all day, this is the only way,” the mum is heard saying in the background of the video. Hank, in military uniform, then proceeded to place Gunner face down on the bed before he was flipped over onto his back. User @auntkaren0, who reposted the video, also said, “I don’t see what’s funny here. I don’t understand how putting your toddler in an uncomfortable position is funny and then posting it for views. “Not only did you not just do this for your own entertainment, you thought this was going to be everybody’s entertainment. “This is why I don’t like family channels like this, because they will go to any length for views.” Many other TikTok users shared their concern for the child, one comment said, “My anxiety when he fell forward and I was like omg he’s going to suffocate.” Another comment read, “That gave me anxiety. The feeling of not being able to move! That poor kid.” A third user said, “That gave me anxiety. The feeling of not being able to move! That poor kid.” Addressing the initial video, Savannah appeared tearful, saying, “Right now, we're dealing with a situation where Gunner has been taken from us until CPS can evaluate our home because I posted a video of my husband and son playing. “That video was skewed in a way [that resulted in] people thinking we were abusing our child. But he was laughing and smiling and it was just a funny thing Hank did because Gunner was getting into the stove that day and tried putting a fork in a socket. “Hank playfully wrapped him in cling wrap - he had room to move. He looked like a little worm, like a little cucumber. He was at no point in distress or crying. “We would never hurt our son, we would never hurt our child. He is the best thing that's ever happened to us. “I posted that video two days ago and the response that it had gotten was positive so like I didn't know that someone had thought it was bad until yesterday when cops showed up at our door and separated us, his family. “We went down and made our statements, thinking Gunner was going to be returned to us that day and that CPS would do their investigation and see that our home is safe.” “All I can say is that my son is so loved and cherished. He is my miracle baby, he was my fourth pregnancy after three miscarriages, and he's the light of my life.” She added. “We made a mistake and we don't deserve our child taken away because of it.” The mumfluencer then posted another TikTok that appeared to show the child was back home in the custody of her and her husband. Image credit: TikTok

Legal

Mum slammed for cruel cling wrap ‘prank’

Warning: This article contains disturbing content which some readers may find distressing. Tiktok influencer Savannah Glembin and her husband have come under fire for their decision to wrap their distressed toddler’s entire torso in cling wrap. In the now deleted video, the couple can be seen taking a concerning approach to discipline with their “stubborn” child. While Enya’s ‘Only Time’ plays in the background, Savannah’s husband Hank is standing behind their son, Gunner, as the toddler perches on a bed, his arms trapped against his sides in layers of cling wrap. “Grumpy toddler all day?” Savannah can be heard asking her audience, while over the video the text “this is the only way” is displayed. The family’s dog appears, before Hank lays Gunner on the bed, facedown, and states that “he’s a worm”. Gunner, then on his back, cries as he rolls to his side, unable to move any further. Although Savannah removed the incident from her feed, many accounts stitched the original video (the TikTok equivalent of a repost with additional commentary) beforehand. One user, known on the app as Aunt Karen, offered a trigger warning at the beginning of hers, stating that “this feels like abuse.” <div class="element-embed clear-both" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; text-align: center; margin-bottom: 20px; color: #333333; font-family: roboto_regular, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; background-color: #ffffff;"> <blockquote id="v13272776541841646" class="tiktok-embed" style="margin: 18px auto; box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; width: 605px; line-height: 1.15; overflow: hidden; text-size-adjust: 100%; font-family: proxima-regular, PingFangSC, sans-serif; max-width: 605px; min-width: 325px;" cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@auntkaren0/video/7207105964476992811" data-video-id="7207105964476992811"><iframe style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: initial; border-style: none; max-width: 100%; width: 605px; height: 740px; display: block; visibility: unset; max-height: 740px; margin-left: auto !important; margin-right: auto !important;" src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7207105964476992811?lang=en-GB&referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tvanouvelles.ca%2F2023%2F03%2F07%2Fune-video-tiktok-seme-lindignation-alors-quun-bambin-est-la-proie-du-jeu-lugubre-de-son-pere" name="__tt_embed__v13272776541841646" sandbox="allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-scripts allow-top-navigation allow-same-origin"></iframe></blockquote> </div> <div id="magnite_outstream" class="splitbox-container" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: roboto_regular, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; background-color: #ffffff;"></div> <div id="fsk_splitbox_992_onscreen" class="fsk_splitbox_992_onscreen" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; color: #333333; font-family: roboto_regular, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; background-color: #ffffff;"> <div id="fsk_splitbox_992" class=" fsk_splitbox_992" style="box-sizing: border-box; max-width: 603px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; height: 0px; text-align: center;"><iframe id="fsk_frame_splitbox" style="box-sizing: border-box; width: 602.998px; height: 0px; border-width: initial; border-style: none; margin: 0px;" name="fsk_frame_splitbox" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> </div> "I don't see what's funny here,” Aunt Karen concludes. “I don't understand how putting your toddler in an uncomfortable position is funny and then posting it for views. “Not only did you not just do this for your own entertainment, you thought this was going to be everybody's entertainment. "This is why I don't like family channels like this, because they will go to any length for views." People from all around the world were in agreement, outraged at the treatment of the toddler. The uproar grew so loud that child protective services in the US - where the family reside - got involved, and Savannah was forced to post a tearful ‘apology’ to her account. “I made the biggest mistake of my life posting this video. Genuinely and truly he was laughing and smiling and was out of the plastic in under five minutes,” she said. Many were quick to point out that while Savannah had apologised for posting the content, she hadn’t actually owned up to what they’d done to their son. “Right now, we're dealing with a situation where Gunner has been taken from us until CPR can evaluate our home,” Savannah told followers in another video, “because I posted a video of my husband and son playing." Savannah insisted that her son was not upset, despite his distressed demeanour in the original post. "That video was skewed in a way [and led to] people thinking we were abusing our child,” she said. “But he was laughing and smiling and it was just a funny thing Hank did because Gunner was getting into the stove that day and tried putting a fork in a socket. "Hank playfully wrapped him in cling wrap, he had room to move, he looked like a little cucumber. At no point was he in distress or crying. "We would never hurt our son. He is the best thing that's ever happened to us.” Savannah noted that they hadn’t expected the response their video received, and claimed that they hadn’t realised anyone felt negatively “until yesterday when cops showed up and our door and separated us, his family.” "We made a mistake,” Savannah concluded, “and we don't deserve our child taken away because of it." Gunner has since been returned to the couple, with Savannah captioning yet another TikTok update “home where he belongs”. Images: TikTok

Family & Pets

Is 13 too young to have a TikTok or Instagram account?

The surgeon general is the “<a href="https://www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/index.html">nation’s doctor</a>” in the United States. They are tasked with giving Americans the “best scientific information” about their health. Late last month, the current US surgeon general, Vivek Murthy, <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/29/health/surgeon-general-social-media/index.html">warned</a> 13 is too young to join social media. He said it poses a risk to young people’s “self-worth and their relationships”, adding, "I, personally, based on the data I’ve seen, believe that 13 is too early […] the skewed and often distorted environment of social media often does a disservice to many of those children." Is 13 too young? What should parents think about when it comes to their kids and social media accounts? <h2>Why are we talking about 13?</h2> Major social media platforms, including <a href="https://help.twitter.com/en/managing-your-account/account-restoration">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/new-ways-to-verify-age-on-instagram">Instagram</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/help/157793540954833">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/safety/en/guardians-guide/">TikTok</a>, require users to be at least 13. This includes those in Australia and New Zealand. This minimum age requirement stems from <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/rules/childrens-online-privacy-protection-rule-coppa">1998 US legislation</a> which banned the collection of children’s personal data without parental consent. For many parents, schools and cybersafety experts, this minimum age has become something of a benchmark. Many assume it comes with the implicit assurance social media platforms are appropriate and safe for children once they turn 13. Conversely, they also assume they are unsafe for children under 13. But this is not necessarily the case. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> When I speak with kids & parents about <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/YouthMentalHealth?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#YouthMentalHealth</a>, the number one question I get is if social media is harming our kids. Based on the data I’ve seen and the conversations I’ve had, I believe 13 is too young for our kids to start using social media. <a href="https://t.co/vpBEcWySFc">https://t.co/vpBEcWySFc</a> — Dr. Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General (@Surgeon_General) <a href="https://twitter.com/Surgeon_General/status/1621644953347563526?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <h2>What does the evidence say?</h2> Social media platforms do present some risks for young people. These include <a href="https://theconversation.com/cyberbullying-among-teens-our-research-shows-online-abuse-and-school-bullying-are-often-linked-119442">online bullying</a> and harassment, exposure to misinformation and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/dec/15/tiktok-self-harm-study-results-every-parents-nightmare">inappropriate content</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/children-can-be-exposed-to-sexual-predators-online-so-how-can-parents-teach-them-to-be-safe-120661">grooming</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/dozens-of-us-schools-universities-move-to-ban-tiktok-197393">privacy breaches</a> and excessive use. Stories documenting the potentially harmful effects of social media are rarely out of the news. Studies claim links between social media and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/mar/28/social-media-may-affect-girls-mental-health-earlier-than-boys-study-finds">poor mental health</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/jan/01/social-media-triggers-children-to-dislike-their-own-bodies-says-study">low self-esteem</a>. These findings are concerning, and there is no doubt social media may negatively affect some young people’s wellbeing. However, it is not a straightforward question. While these studies might find a correlation or link between excessive social media use and poor self-esteem, for example, they rarely point to direct causation. Young people already experiencing low self-esteem and depression may use social media significantly more than others. <h2>So why don’t we just increase the age?</h2> Murthy acknowledges it is difficult to keep kids off their devices and social media. But he suggests parents band together, "and say you know, as a group, we’re not going to allow our kids to use social media until 16 or 17 or 18." But any increase in the age - whether formal or informal – will not necessarily keep children safer online. Children can easily falsify their ages (<a href="https://academic.oup.com/jcmc/article/18/3/303/4067510">many already do</a>). And young people are good at finding creative and secretive ways of doing what they want regardless. <h2>Why can’t parents just say no?</h2> It is often suggested – by cyber safety experts – that parents <a href="https://www.cybersafetysolutions.com.au/top-tips/">just say no</a>. This message has been reinforced by celebrity commentators such as British actress Kate Winslet, who recently told the BBC, "My children don’t have social media and haven’t had social media." While these approaches may work with younger kids, older children are unlikely to simply comply. Blanket bans and restrictions not only lead to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1461444816655099?casa_token=q7SXs7TW4vMAAAAA:F8rirALQj6c2dGZb3pH8OHPbfy7zqwG-pkktOkU6H7Ig6MKg1jmbVNBHFt17bCOh8IfGOsVpsw5aPg">family conflict</a>, but are also more likely to lead to children using social media without parental consent or <a href="https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/parenting4digitalfuture/2017/02/07/digital-skills-matter-in-the-quest-for-the-holy-grail/">knowledge</a>. This is a problem because parents play an important role in helping children navigate online spaces, including the sometimes fraught nature of peer relationships on social media. If a child has a social media account without parental permission, they are much less likely to seek out their parents for help if they have a problem online, for fear of getting into trouble or having their device taken away. <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cl3aWdyPqGw/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cl3aWdyPqGw/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by BBC Woman's Hour (@bbcwomanshour)</a> </div> </blockquote> <h2>Children also have a right to be online</h2> Discussion about risks also tends to ignore the <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/11/16/connection-creativity-and-drama-teen-life-on-social-media-in-2022/">potential benefits</a> of being online. Social media is incredibly important for many young people. It keeps them connected with friends and extended family, provides a platform for creativity and self-expression, and enables civic participation and activism. Social media also provides access to like-minded individuals and communities who may provide solidarity and support, especially for marginalised teens. Children, particularly teenagers, also have a right to participate in online spaces, including use of social media. The United Nations’ Committee on the Rights of the Child <a href="https://docstore.ohchr.org/SelfServices/FilesHandler.ashx?enc=6QkG1d%2FPPRiCAqhKb7yhsqIkirKQZLK2M58RF%2F5F0vEG%2BcAAx34gC78FwvnmZXGFUl9nJBDpKR1dfKekJxW2w9nNryRsgArkTJgKelqeZwK9WXzMkZRZd37nLN1bFc2t">notes</a> children have the right to “meaningful access to digital technologies” as a way of realising the full range of their civil, political, cultural, economic and social rights. <h2>So, when should my child get a TikTok account?</h2> There is no one-size-fits-all approach here. Children vary tremendously in terms of their maturity, skills, life experience and judgement. On top of this, online risk is not equally distributed, as children who are <a href="https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/parenting4digitalfuture/2019/02/20/vulnerable-offline-and-at-risk-online/">more vulnerable offline are more vulnerable online</a>. For example, children with mental health problems, learning difficulties, a disability or who have problems at home are more likely to experience high-risk situations online. In deciding whether your child is ready for a social media account, parents might consider: <ul> <li> Is my child especially vulnerable to online harms? </li> <li> Does my child have the required maturity and resilience to manage potentially negative online social interactions? </li> <li> Does my child listen to advice and follow rules? </li> <li> Is my child aware of the risks, and do they have strategies for managing them? </li> <li> Will my child come to me with any problems they encounter online? </li> </ul> Parents might also consider their children’s offline lives, as these often carry over into online spaces. This includes what their friendships are like, their propensity for taking risks, and their ability to consider the consequences of their actions. <h2>Start talking early</h2> The best thing that parents can do is initiate conversations about social media and the internet early and often. Many issues that play out on social media are extensions of young people’s existing peer relationships. Parents can talk to their children about their friends and peers, show an interest in their child’s online activities, and openly discuss their child’s rights and responsibilities online. Some parents may wish to set reasonable expectations and rules about appropriate use of social media. Documenting these expectations through a “family technology agreement” that is negotiated <a href="https://eprints.lse.ac.uk/106403/1/parenting4digitalfuture_2020_08_19_parenting_for_a_digital_future.pdf">democratically</a> as a family, rather than through top-down rules, is more likely to succeed. Image credits: Getty Images This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-13-too-young-to-have-a-tiktok-or-instagram-account-199097" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>.

Technology

Warning against latest egg-stremely restrictive diet trend

A viral “egg diet” is the latest weight loss trend taking over TikTok as people continue to find ways to drop a few kilos. The #eggdiet has attracted over 68.5 million views, with a lot of people sharing their weight-loss success. Nutritionists warn the egg-stremely restrictive diet is simply unsustainable and just another eggs-ample of why most diets fail. According to TikTok users, the egg diet consists of eating only eggs for every meal, alongside low-carb snacks such as fruit, veggies, and some additional protein. While this diet is capable of boosting your metabolism and burning fat in the short term, it can then slow the metabolism and make it more difficult to lose weight in the future. One TikTok user trying the diet admitted she had broken it, writing, ”I think the last nine days of eating the bare minimum has caught up with me today. The whole day I just felt nauseous.” A diet focused on one food eggs-cludes many healthy food groups that are otherwise beneficial for your body. This can lead to nutritional deficiencies, an unhealthy amount of weight loss, mood changes, muscle weakness, and hair loss. A nutrition eggs-pert from Fitness Volt says most people fail to stick with their diet long enough for it to work sustainably. They make fast progress, but egg-ventually, they fall off the wagon and return to their previous diet plan. "That's why so many of us lose weight only to regain it shortly afterwards, and it seems long-term, sustainable weight loss is rare nowadays," Saini said. "Fortunately, healthy eating doesn't have to be complicated or unpleasant, and weight management doesn't have to take over your life. "You don't even have to give up your favourite foods. However, you will need to quit looking for short-term fixes and adopt healthier long-term habits.” It is clear the #eggdiet is not sustainable and the lack of nutrition is likely to leave your brain scrambled. The idea is a bit of a crack-up, but don’t whisk it. Image credit: TikTok

Body

Outrage at couple’s explosive gender reveal

Love them or hate them, gender reveals seem primed to stay. While some couples prefer to keep their unborn baby’s gender a surprise for loved ones, others are keen to share the news with the world. And in the age of the internet, many parents-to-be are committed to having the biggest event yet. One couple has gone viral on TikTok for their reveal, but it hasn’t been the positive affair they’d hoped for, with many slamming them for putting lives in danger with their stunt. In the clip, the excited pair are standing at sunset with their two daughters in front of a massive sign that lights up to read “oh baby”. Pink and blue balloons surround them all, while Bruno Mars’ ‘Locked Out of Heaven’ plays over the video. Mere seconds in, the sign erupts with fireworks, pink smoke, and confetti. The couple seem thrilled to have learned they’re expecting another girl, jumping around and cheering with their two young children. <div class="embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important;"><iframe class="embedly-embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 0px; border-style: initial; vertical-align: baseline; width: 620px; max-width: 100%; outline: none !important;" title="tiktok embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2Fv2%2F7173812850702454022&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40blancarore33%2Fvideo%2F7173812850702454022&image=https%3A%2F%2Fp16-sign-va.tiktokcdn.com%2Fobj%2Ftos-maliva-p-0068%2Fedbf7bee036c450da31af699ae689a51_1670283471%3Fx-expires%3D1676019600%26x-signature%3DSjekZvCX9KbuH3KAM5P3ipVDuWs%253D&key=59e3ae3acaa649a5a98672932445e203&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> Despite their elation, viewers did not share in their cause for celebration, instead noting the blatant danger of their outrageous display. “This could have gone wrong on so many levels,” commented one viewer. “Could have gone so wrong and regret forever,” agreed another. “Forest fire core,” wrote one, referencing the more recent internet trend of adopting specific style aesthetics and declaring them ‘something-core’. “Right underneath the very nonflammable eucalyptus trees,” someone else noted. However, despite the very real risk, some simply enjoyed the spectacle. And in what was a cause for concern for many, a large number of viewers declared their desire to have a reveal just like it. “If it takes all my life earnings to make my gender reveal like this,” one said, “then I will spend it in an instant.” “This just motivated me to work harder in life cus this needs to be me,” came one response, among a sea of related comments about the cost of such an event. Concerns over the couple’s stunt stem from a series of unfortunate results over the years, most notably from a similar incident in 2020, when a gender reveal in California was responsible for a bushfire that claimed 10,000 acres of land. In 2018, another couple’s reveal was the spark behind a 47,000-acre bushfire. The bad news cycle surrounding such these events has even led to the woman credited with inventing the concept - blogger Jenna Karvunidis - to apologise for it. Images: TikTok

Family & Pets

"Better late than never": Dolly Parton fans erupt over announcement

The Queen of country music, Dolly Parton has finally made her debut on TikTok. Sharing the news even more widely to Twitter, Parton wrote “Better late than never”, along with a wink and a link to her new account. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Better late than never 😉<a href="https://t.co/ZYsuTMuyod">https://t.co/ZYsuTMuyod</a> <a href="https://t.co/6MGl4bR1JX">pic.twitter.com/6MGl4bR1JX</a> — Dolly Parton (@DollyParton) <a href="https://twitter.com/DollyParton/status/1599535444965748739?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 4, 2022</a></blockquote> In her first TikTok, the country music star then wrote: "I have arrived." The video was accompanied by a series of clips spanning her decades-long career while 9 to 5 plays in the background. <blockquote class="tiktok-embed" style="max-width: 720px; min-width: 288px;" cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@dollyparton" data-unique-id="dollyparton" data-embed-type="creator"> <section><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@dollyparton?refer=creator_embed" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@dollyparton</a></section> </blockquote> Talk about a warm welcome! Fans have been holding down the fort in anticipation of her arrival and despite only just joining the app, Dolly has wasted no time and has already clocked up an impressive half a million followers. To date, videos with the hashtags #DollyParton and #DollyTok have over 6.4 billion views. Furthermore, #DollyTok is a sub-community where TikTok users come together to celebrate her music, movies and iconic persona. 9 to 5 isn't the only Parton song to enjoy a revival thanks to TikTok; Jolene and Islands in the Stream have also enjoyed a re-birth. However, Parton's TikToks have revealed the singer's secret passion - which is cooking. The beloved country music star has already posted five cooking-related clips to celebrate her new Christmas song Berry Pie. Image: TikTok

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"Better late than never": Dolly Parton fans erupt over announcement