‘Flip the Camera’ Trend Faces Backlash Over Bullying Accusations
A viral TikTok trend that has gained popularity over the last month has shocked many viewers, who call it bullying at the expense of the person being recorded.
Known as the ‘Flip the Camera Challenge,’ it involves asking someone — perhaps a stranger or an acquaintance — to film a video of a group of young people dancing. But the person recording is ultimately tricked when one of the group switches the camera lens to reveal the person filming.
Often, the kids who are carrying out the challenge appear to be picking out a homeless person, an unsuspecting mom, or maybe someone in their school. “We shouldn’t be building a whole trend around tearing someone down,” writes Instagram blogger @coquettesvanilla.
“Bullying isn’t always loud or obvious; sometimes it hides behind ‘it’s just for fun.’ But if someone gets hurt, then it wasn’t fun to begin with. We can choose to be better. We can choose not to add to the negativity or make people feel ashamed of themselves. Social media doesn’t have to be a place where people get laughed at, it can be a place where we actually respect each other.”
“The flip camera trend turned into straight-up bullying,” she adds in a further post. “People act like it’s some harmless joke but it’s not. You’re literally freezing someone at their worst angle and laughing at them like they’re not even a real person. It’s messed up.”
@jaycrudddy 😂😂😂😂 lil Mari glockkkkk #fyp #dmvtiktok #dmv #dc ♬ original sound – Underated
According to Know Your Meme, the trend may have started by TikToker @jaycruddy, whose video posted on October 29 is set to the rap song Mari Glock. Since then, the trend has spread online but is now facing growing criticism.
“In their opinions, the TikTokers doing the trend are targeting people whom they perceive as ugly to record them,” notes Know Your Meme.
The front-facing camera, known to many as the selfie camera, has been a popular addition ever since it was introduced on the iPhone 4 in 2010. Although it was originally marketed for FaceTime video calls by Steve Jobs, the selfie camera is now one of the iPhone’s most important features. Apple recently updated it for the iPhone 17 by changing the sensor so it is square. This means the user no longer has to rotate their phone to change the orientation of the shot, an AI will decide whether the picture should be vertical or horizontal.
