You may have seen the story of a dad trolling his daughter’s selfies doing the rounds this past week, mainly because it has been shared over 13 thousand times on Facebook – which even for a viral story, is a hell of a lot. Chris Burr Martin has been trolling his daughter for a few months now. It all started after he noticed his daughter posting ‘sexy selfies’ of herself on Instagram, so he decided to copy her. The comedian and podcaster from Washington has racked up thousands and thousands of likes, and now has 2x more followers than his daughter, and interestingly the topic has divided millennials and the grown-ups.
It’s clear to see from his Instagram feed that his daughter, Cassie, is totally on board with the joke, but people on Facebook seem to have different opinions about the dad’s less original approach to trolling. Because let’s face it, this isn’t the first time a parent has attempted to go viral from copying their kids poses.
Take one look at the comments on Bored Panda’s Facebook post and it’s clear to see that there’s a millennial, parent divide. One comment reads: ‘I think the girl looks adorable and her father is mocking her instead of supporting her. Justifying the idea that other people can make fun of his daughter as well. This is not funny, this is kind of sad.’
Others call him a bully, claiming him to be ‘slut-shaming’ his daughter. While those on board with the joke, deeming those complaining about the nature of his Instagram as ‘cry babies,’ if the ‘youth of today can’t have anything said to them without crying "trigger" or having meltdown.’
So where to stand? The point we need to consider here is that If this was a stranger copycatting someone’s Instagram posts by mocking their outfit choices and poses then it probably would feel off colour, or like bullying. But a father boycotting his daughters’ account isn’t the same thing. If anything the two are probably plotting together social media domination as they watch the likes roll in - and while we shouldn’t take ‘copycatting’ lightly, this is clearly just a ploy to go viral.
Like this? You might also be interested in…
Apparently This Is How Teens Speak To Each Other Now. We Call BS.
Gemma Styles On Being Trolled Online And How To Deal With It
We Talk To Maisie Williams From GOT About Trolls, Her Secret Tumblr And Her New Channel 4 Drama
Follow Alyss on Instagram @alyssbowen
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.