Random Post 1

 I would like to take this time to write about a situation occurring on TikTok. Yes, on TikTok but I personally think it’s very shocking. There is a famous user named Mr. Prada on the social media platform TikTok. Terryon Thomas, famously known as Mr. Prada was a famous creator who often copied other creators content in a satirical way, but eventually grew to have his own personality and content, garnering over 8 million followers between two different accounts he created. Over the past couple of months, users had noticed that he seemed to be changing rapidly; his mental health deteriorating as he began behaving more erratically on social media, changing his appearance, shaving his head, and posting content out of the ordinary compared to his usual posts. I woke up one morning to my feed filled with content surrounding this creator, and it was shockingly not what I was prepared to see. 

I woke up early one morning to find that Mr. Prada, or Terryon Thomas, had been accused of murdering his therapist; and everyone took to social media to share their thoughts. Social media is a very interesting place, as social media divided into what I would categorize as 4 different responses to the situation.

1. The memes
2. The news reporters
3. The “mental health conspirators”
4. The reality checkers

The memes

Considering our generation is glued to our phones, many tend to respond with humour to real life news and situations. Many made jokes about the therapist and mr. pradas content, laughing about how the TikTok creator had already been acting out of ordinary, labeling his breakdown as what our generation calls “crashing out”. 

The News Reporters

With our phones able to record and document everything, another group of individuals took to researching and finding any information possible, sharing any news or updates that may lead to the truth. Security footage quickly surfaced with blurred images, many quickly naming and pointing out the resemblance of the security images to Terryon himself. One user became the star of the case, his page becoming infamous for constantly updating on the situation often far before the news or police could even release information. These users quickly began to release witness footage that was shared online from Terryon running away, to him dragging a tarp into the therapists then stolen car, up to his arrest. 

The Mental Health Conspirators

A large group of people took the defense of Terryon, claiming the state of his mental health was very poor and his erratic social media content was a “cry for help”. It was shared on TikTok that the therapist of Terryon was accused of inappropriate interactions with children. Many made claims that the therapist could possibly have abused Terryon and pushed him over the edge. I know, lots of insane twists and turns. 

The Reality Checkers

Now, as social media is often a place of memes, fake news, and content meant to entertain, there was a need to remind people not to spiral into false information. The truth of the matter was that a famous user had murdered another individual. Many came to their platforms to remind users that this is not a situation to make jokes of or spread false information, and that someone that many people watched online everyday had in fact murdered someone. Formal news had also come out to share that the therapist, was not actually Terryon's therapist, and information came forth that the therapist had gone to meet Terryon through a private sexual interaction. Terryon is currently in custody and charged for second degree murder and obstruction of justice.

I know, this is a lot of information right? It felt like whiplash reading all of the information back and forth trying to figure out what was true. I think its a really hard concept to process although it is a great reality check; not everything we see on social media is real and you never know what a person is really like behind a camera. It is also really hard to fathom, as anyone, and specifically kids and youth have access and follow the creators content. Anyone watching his content may feel influenced or find this of some entertainment, and I don’t think the severity of what we are watching occur has really sunk in. This is one of the first times we are experiencing a murder case unfold through social media; a famous content creator being the accused and information coming out before the police had even made arrests. A shocking situation to say the least and one that raises a lot of questions.