Viral Video

Infamy is just a smartphone away

I t wasn’t that long ago that a fraternity chapter at the University of Oklahoma got into deep trouble when a video surfaced showing some members singing a song that was racially insensitive at best.

Not long after another fraternity at the University of North Texas got into trouble when a video that surfaced after an alleged hazing ritual prompted allegations not only of hazing, but of homophobic conduct as well.

You would think someone would be paying attention.

Apparently not. Now a fraternity at Indiana University has been shut down by its national office after a video showing a member engaged in a sex act with a woman later identified as an “exotic dancer” went viral.

The short clip—less than a minute— was originally thought to show a hazing ritual and speculation was that the fraternity member was a pledge forced to perform the act. A subsequent investigation by the fraternity’s national office revealed he was a 21-year-old active.

But that didn’t matter. The national headquarters said the chapter had violated the fraternity’s code of conduct, engaging in activities “contrary to the ideals and principals” of the organization. Their charter was revoked.

Many of our readers have sons away at college. And some are members of fraternities. For most, fraternity life is a fine experience and creates lifelong bonds with their fellow members. But guys in their late teens and early 20s do not always make the best decisions. These incidents and hundreds like them over the past several years show that clearly.

We don’t condemn the fraternity system as so many have. Instead, we think it’s time these college students took an important lesson to heart.

It’s not the 1980s. Times have changed. And you just can’t get away with a lot of things society used to accept with a wink, nod and “boys will be boys.”

Parents, too, have a role in this. Many are footing the bill for an education or at least contributing to the tab. Incidents like this, depending on the severity, can lead not only to a young fellow having to find a new place to live, but also to suspension or expulsion from school and even criminal charges. And in some hazing cases, injury or death.

Time to face the facts. Just about everything you do these days will be made public. The national news is just a smartphone away. Think twice, three times before you do anything you don’t want exposed to the world.

In other words, “Animal House” is a fun film but it’s not a template for college life. Not anymore.