‘Shot or Killed’: Police Warn Teens Against TikTok Door Knock Challenge
By Movieguide® Contributor
Texas police are warning teens against participating in a new TikTok trend specifically designed to startle and unsettle others.
The TikTok door knock challenge “encourages individuals to bang or kick doors in the middle of the night in an effort to startle residents,” Texas police explained. A new take on the ding-dong-ditch prank, police are worried this new challenge could lead to serious injury.
“This is a very dangerous game, very dangerous game,” Fort Bend County Constable Precinct 3 Chief Deputy Jimmy Evans said. “I’m afraid a homeowner may think someone is trying to burglarize their residence and some innocent kid can get shot or killed.”
While those participating in the challenge may argue that, despite it happening late at night, the action itself is just a harmless prank, videos online show a more criminal side.
Doorbell camera videos reveal that some participants are taking the challenge too far and causing expensive property damage. One video shows a group ramming a door with a five-pound water jug.
“I would tell them stop it before they get hurt, or they hurt somebody,” 77-year-old Gwen told Fox 26 Houston after she was a victim of one of these groups. They left $2,500 in damages. “Please don’t do this. It’s wrong. It’s very wrong. It was scary. It was frightening. It was terrifying.”
TikTok has yet to take action against the door-knock challenge, though it will hopefully limit the spread of these videos before they become too popular. While the app has restricted the spread of dangerous challenges in the past, it often fails to do so before extensive damage has occurred.
Trends such as the “blackout challenge” and “devious lick challenge” are two examples of dangerous fads that were spread on TikTok for weeks, resulting in injury and even death before the social media platform took action.
Movieguide® previously reported:
Perhaps the most popular social media application, TikTok, recently announced that they would remove videos following the latest trend of students stealing school property.
The viral videos, which became known as “devious licks,” featured students taking items like wet floor signs, microscopes, clocks, and other items from their school. The trend spread like wildfire on the app and encouraged students in the illegal behavior.
“We expect our community to stay safe and create responsibly, and we do not allow content that promotes or enables criminal activities,” TikTok said in an email statement. “We are removing this content and redirecting hashtags and search results to our Community Guidelines to discourage such behavior.”
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Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.
You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.
Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
