Even though Halloween has come and gone, for some children it will forever be an example of distrust and fear. Jimmy Kimmel, a show host and comedian has, for three years, been causing children to cry, scream, and become distrusting of their parents.
How could a comedian do this?
Kimmel's annual Halloween prank was to have parents videotape their children as they told their young sons and daughters they had eaten all of their beloved Halloween candy.
Outcry from the community is a mixture of laughter and anger.
Personally, I find this joke funny and amusing. I will admit though, after I watched it I said "Those poor children!". But was I angry at the parents? Of course not. In my opinion, five minutes of joking around will not scar a child for life. That takes months or years for it to be permanently distrusting of one's parents. But I guess I am not a psychologist...
According to Mark Barnett, a professor and graduate program coordinator at Kansas State University's department of psychological sciences says this prank is cruel and potentially damaging. Jane Annunziata, a McLean, Va.-based psychologist who deals with family issues also said the prank was inappropriate parental behavior. Does that make me a bad person, or does that just show how vulnerable and important early trust development really is?
According to the Youtube uploads by Kimmel,it appears more people are on my side, laughing, with 45,000 giving a "thumbs up" and 2,191 giving a "thumbs down" to the video. Many adults took part in this prank, as thousands of videos were sent to the TV station.
"To the children whose fears are about to be immortalized on television, I apologize in advance," he said.
A collage of videos
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