Facebook is killing the British stag do
Blokes are scared videos of stupid antics will go viral
THE stag do is dying out because grooms are terrified their drunken antics will be flashed around on the internet.
Camera phones and social media means embarrassing moments of excess can quickly goes viral.
A third of men in a survey said their biggest fear was of squirm-inducing videos “getting out” afterwards. And 60% now dread getting invites to stag dos.
James Starkey, of researchers The Big Domain, said: “We’re seeing a cultural shift.
“Apart from wanting to avoid the hangover, one of the biggest concerns causing 40% of men to turn down invites is the possibility of compromising photos making their way online.
“In the digital age a single lapse of judgement can be broadcast for the whole world to see, forever.
“Facebook and social media is playing a part in changing the traditional stag party culture because men fear the backlash they’d receive for their holiday antics.”
Saturdays singer Una Healy knows how it feels when stags go viral.
Her husband-to-be, England rugby international husband Ben Foden, was filmed gyrating with a stripper on his 2012 stag do in Barcelona.
Una later forgave him, saying: “I feel sorry for him and embarrassed that the whole world got to see what he did on his stag.”
Less fortunate was a husband-to-be, who woke to find a pair of Ray-ban sunglasses etched on his face.
He tried to wash off what he thought was felt tip pen – then realised in horror it was a tattoo.
It took the Swansea man, who was too embarrassed to be named, two years to remove the marks after his 2015 blow-out in Blackpool.
The Big Domain’s research found a 48% of men fear embarrassing footage will crop up on Facebook or other social media platforms.
And 65% said they hated the objectification of women at stag parties and feared pictures and videos could damage relationships and careers.
As a result, 33% hope the stag do tradition will die out, with 18% saying the prospect of being caught up in “compromising photos” meant the booze ups were no longer “a laugh”.
Party organisers are reporting the rise of the “sten” party – joint parties for hens and stags – in a bid to put an end to the social media carnage. Ian Lucas, founder of Red7, which offers travel and party packages, said their mixed travel bookings had grown by 200%in the past two years.
He said: “We’ve made a conscious decision to degender stag and hen experiences and appeal to joint parties.
“It’s less about groups of women with L-plates and blokes going wild and more about having special experiences with friends.”