Middle School Cheerleaders Made a TikTok Video Portraying a School Shooting. They Were Charged With a Crime.

Middle school cheerleaders in East Tennessee faced disorderly conduct charges for a TikTok video where they pretended to be dead, highlighting a trend of harsh student punishment for social media missteps. Authorities aim to deter threats, but critics argue this approach, particularly in Tennessee, often criminalizes jokes and misinterpretations. A 16-year-old was expelled and charged with threatening mass violence for a private AI-generated video, even after administrators acknowledged it was a joke. Another student faced arrest and expulsion for sharing a screenshot of threatening texts, intending to warn others. The cheerleaders' video, posted after a fatal school shooting, was easily traceable due to visible faces, unlike other vague online threats law enforcement struggled to investigate. Experts suggest a more measured approach, distinguishing credible threats from thoughtless reposts, is needed to avoid traumatizing students. A similar case in Pennsylvania saw a student expelled for memes mocking another student, but the state's highest court ruled in the student's favor, stating the memes were not intended as threats. This ruling emphasizes the difficulty schools face in navigating social media's reach and the potential for misinterpretation. Despite a school's initial panic over an AI-generated threat video, the student's charge was dismissed after an essay on social media dangers, though his expulsion was upheld. Students themselves acknowledge that jokes about school violence are common, serving as a coping mechanism for desensitization. Organizations like Safer Schools Together train educators in digital investigation skills to discern real threats from recirculated content. These skills, previously for law enforcement, are now crucial for schools to effectively manage online safety concerns.