Guess What? The “Knockout Game” is America’s Latest Phony Panic

[alp227]

Much like "wilding" before it, the furor over the "knockout game" bears all the hallmarks of an overblown panic over a crime wave that doesn't exist.

Have teenagers adopted a new game of random assaults, with the goal of a one-hit “knock out?”

If you’ve been following local news, watching national coverage, or reading your Facebook newsfeed, you might think the answer is “yes.” The TODAY Show, for instance, reports that “teenagers (are) knocking people out for the fun of it,” targeting “women and children,” with cases “piling up.”

Likewise, CNN writes that “A sick so-called game known as ‘knockout’…is catching the attention of law enforcement throughout the nation,” and USA Today echoes this with a brief on beefed up police vigilance in cities like New York, Washington, New Haven, and Philadelphia.

...

But it’s this media panic—as well as the strongly anecdotal nature of the coverage—that should give us pause before we declare this to be a national problem. After all, this wouldn’t be the first media furor over teen behavior. Recall the panics over “wilding”—where teenagers were attacking innocent bystanders en mass—or “headlight flashing,” where gang members were marking their victims during nighttime drives. In both cases, you could find instances that fit either description, but in a country with tens of millions of teenagers, where you could find examples of almost any behavior, you need more than a few anecdotes to prove a trend.

full: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/11/25/guess-what-the-knockout-game-is-america-s-latest-phony-panic.html

[zappaman]

1. Jinx!!!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024091918

[DinahMoeHum]

2. The view from Snopes-dot-com. . .

. . .is that it's basically another urban myth.

With regard to "Beulah Montgomery":
http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/montgomery.asp

(snip)
Although there has been at least one legitimate recent news account of a would-be knockout game victim (non-fatally) shooting his attacker, the story about Beulah Montgomery appears to be a completely fabricated one. The article as presented includes no details of date or location or any other verifiable information (outside of the name 'Beulah Montgomery'), and the alleged shooting incident has not been reported on by any standard news outlet — even though knockout game stories have been garnering a good deal of prominent coverage in the mainstream media. This account is the exclusive province of blogs, forums, social media postings, and alternative news sites, all offering the same unsourced, detail-free story that has gone completely unmentioned by mainstream news sources, a reliable indicator that the whole thing is a hoax.
(snip)

[SQUEE]

3. Your link is refuting any fatal response to the Knockout Game..

not to the supposed phenomenon itself

[wercal]

4. I don't know what constitutes a 'legitimate news account', but its happened more than once

Twenty seconds on youtube and I found 4 videos of it.

Here's one:

&feature=youtu.be

This case was from 2009, and I have heard about this for years. So the sudden media fascination with it is curious...but it is a very real activity. Of course it is very rare, but I certainly wouldn't categorize it as an 'urban myth'.

Here's a story from two years ago.

http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2011-06-09/news/knockout-king-elex-murphy-hoang-nguyen-dutchtown-murder/

A very non-mythical man died. A very non-mythical man was tried for murder. And a very non-mythical kid describes the rules of the game and his exploits. Its a long article, and it chronicles the specifics of 5 other cases in one metro area.

Don't pretend its a flat out fantasy.

[DinahMoeHum]

13. This is not about "pretending". . .or "fantasy". . .

Odds are, the cases you cite were regarded by law enforcement simply as assault cases and not as an indication of any trend.

And, sorry, but a few anecdotes out of thousands of assault cases hardly ever constitute a "trend".

Let's let the original article from TDB speak here:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/11/25/guess-what-the-knockout-game-is-america-s-latest-phony-panic.html

(snip)
The “knockout game” may or may not be a new phenomenon, but with a few instances out of tens of thousands of assaults, it’s not a trend, and media outlets shouldn’t treat it as one. A few teens may describe their behavior as a game, but to hold them up as signs of a crime wave is to cherry-pick data and mislead the audience. A little incredulity, in other words, would go a long way.
(snip)

(boldface emphasis mine - DMH)

[wercal]

14. Actually, in the article I linked, the police Chief acknowledged the existence of the game

In St Louis, where the article is from, it is referred to as "Knockout King".

You are citing data that says its incredibly rare. So what? I said exactly that.

But you originally called it an Urban Myth. Urban myths are completely made up stories that, while plausible, never happened.

The knockout game happens (and it has been happening for several years now). It is most definitely, positively, absolutely NOT A MYTH. It has happened. It is happening. It will happen again.

Just to prove it, here's some more:

See: Real...not myth....kinda like the difference between shark attacks and unicorns.

[DinahMoeHum]

15. Fine, maybe it's not an "urban myth". . .

BUT, it's not an indication of any crime wave, either; and that was the point I was trying to make.

[WinkyDink]

5. What's the basic problem---that incidents ought not be reported? That the media are lying?

Tell you what; YOU go to Philly and walk alone at midnight.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/22/justice/knockout-game-teen-assaults/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2511614/Teen-game-randomly-punching-strangers-nation-wide-problem--CONGRESSWOMAN-latest-victim.html

http://metro.co.uk/2013/11/19/knockout-violent-sucker-punch-game-reportedly-on-the-rise-again-4192454/

http://www.today.com/news/knockout-game-teens-attack-innocent-people-just-fun-2D11648773

Police fear the knockout game has been spreading, with cases from San Diego to St. Louis and Chicago. In Syracuse, N.Y., two men were killed in a possible knockout case. In New York City, police are investigating at least seven attacks.

One knockout game video shows a woman walking down the street when a stranger runs up and clocks her from behind — a sucker punch so brutal, the victim lies on the sidewalk, unable to move. In New Jersey, it appears suspects filmed their own attack, laughing and bragging about it.

[Capt. Obvious]

10. I walked around Philly at night

Was scary, but I survived. I was looking for one of the many homeless people to give our leftovers to.

The man with his pants down was very happy to get the Italian food.

[Blue Idaho]

6. Is there an echo in here?

Two identically titled threads... interesting...

[Lex]

7. It's the title of the article they both posted.

Not sure why that makes it so interesting.

[Blue Idaho]

8. Sorry thanks - I should have guessed.

[Puzzledtraveller]

12. All is well, everything is fine

All is well, everything is fine

You should know this by now.

[Mika]

9. The winter of shark attacks. eom

[arely staircase]

11. this has struck me as the wilding superpredator stories of the 80s

Some real crimes with realb victims that don't point to any frightening sociological trends. Punish the guilty. Help the victims and don't fall for the evil black man/boy who is out to get us all stereotypes.

[HappyMe]

16. I don't know that there is any widespread 'panic'.

There have been 2 or 3 incidents in NYC.

It's like any rash of purse snatchings or phone stealing - be aware of your surroundings.

[FSogol]

17. Know what the teenagers in my neighborhood are doing?

Studying for an AP Calculus exam.