A number of people on social media
mistook a news parody of New York City's controversial “Stop and
Frisk” program as real.
The Onion satirized New York
Mayor Michael Bloomberg's policing policy in a video report released
on Tuesday.
Over images of NYC police officers
padding down male suspects and giving them a gentle kiss, Newsroom
anchor Rachel Cole reported: “A policing procedure in New York
continues to draw controversy this week as thousands took to the
streets to protest the NYPD's Stop and Kiss program. The policy,
which allows officers to kiss anyone who they think looks suspicious,
has been the subject of criticism from those who say it's a violation
of privacy and a potential breach of constitutional rights.”
A man interviewed for the story said:
“Every time I go out and see a cop I'm ready for them to come up,
ask me questions and give me a little kiss. Just because [of], you
know, the color of my skin. I mean, you don't see them kissing any
pretty white ladies out here.” (The video is embedded on this
page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
Not everyone caught on to the joke.
“This story cannot be true,”
tweeted one user, “why would they do this?”
A retired officer wrote on The
Onion's page: “What the hell is going on Police Officers
kissing people… what has become of the department... I am glad I
retired !!!!!”