‘Pretend to cry’: Mum caught coaching son for YouTube video

The little boy had just found out his dog had died, so the mum turned on the selfie cam for a golden content opportunity.

Pilar Grace

less than 2 min read

September 17, 2023 - 9:03PM

Maggie coached her son to cry for the camera, but he was already crying. Photo: TikTok

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Whenever vlogger Maggie* sees an opportunity to create content for her YouTube channel, she’s on it.

Whether her family is fighting, doing something funny, or better yet, if they’re shedding genuine tears, it’s all fair game.

So when her young son found out their family dog died, Maggie couldn’t resist.

She turned on her phone and started comforting him so she could share it with her audience.

But she forgot a very important thing: Maggie failed to edit out the parts where she was directing her son to cry.

And then she made him pose for photo after photo so she could get a good thumbnail to post on YouTube.

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Maggie cried along with her son, but it was hard to tell if the tears were genuine or just for the camera. Photo: TikTok

Mum exploits son’s grief for YouTube video

The video comes from a TikTok criticising Maggie’s behaviour and calling her out for exploiting her son’s grief.

The TikTok shared the final part of the video, where Maggie brings her son in for a cuddle and tells him, “Act like you’re crying”.

“I am crying,” he tells her between sobs.

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The video continues to get more awkward as she asks him to pose “for the video”. For thirty seconds Maggie tries to get the perfect thumbnail, until finally she gives up and directs him to look straight at the camera while she holds his face and he cries.

“It’s ok, it’s ok, it’s over,” she says as they finish up the video.