Tanner Cook, a 21-year-old YouTuber known for his prank videos, was recently shot while filming in the Tysons Corner Center shopping mall in Virginia. Cook, who has almost 40,000 subscribers to his Classified Goons channel, was taken to intensive care where he underwent surgery for injuries to his stomach and liver. According to his father, Cook was using his phone to interview a random person for a prank when the victim didn’t appreciate it and pulled out a gun.
The shooter, identified as Alan Colie, has been charged with aggravated malicious wounding, shooting in the commission of a felony, and discharging firearms within an occupied building. Cook’s friends filmed the arrest and posted it on social media. The incident caused panic at the mall and serves as a warning of the potential dangers of the “prank” genre.
YouTube pranks have faced criticism for their often misleading or threatening nature, and the consequences can be severe. Cook’s case follows the tragic death of fellow YouTuber Timothy Wilks, also known as “Roaming Millennial,” who was shot and killed while filming a video in Tennessee. Wilks was approaching strangers with a butcher knife, asking how they would react if someone attacked them when a man, who believed they were actually robbing people, fired shots at him, killing him on the spot.
The incident highlights the serious risks associated with this genre, which often involves misleading or threatening strangers in public settings for the sake of entertainment. YouTube and other social media platforms that host prank videos need to be more regulated to prevent any further occurrences.
Cook’s footage, including vomiting on ride-sharing service drivers and creating a disturbance in malls, could be used as evidence against Colie. Cook himself denied being angry with Colie and maintained that the incident would not stop him from making prank videos. However, if evidence emerges that Cook had harassed or touched Colie, then the prosecutor may charge him separately.
As videos like these continue to gain popularity, there needs to be a deeper consideration of the potential consequences and a greater responsibility taken by creators to ensure their content is not putting themselves or others in danger. The danger of YouTube prank videos is now more apparent than ever, and it is the responsibility of those involved in the genre to ensure they are not contributing to the problem.
