Remember the days when pranking videos weren't literally everywhere? Back in the 90s, stuff like Jackass and the Tom Green Show was seen as groundbreaking for showcasing clever, inventive pranks on TV. These pioneers were trolling others before trolling even had a name. But nowadays, with YouTube totally dominating our culture, pranking videos are ubiquitous. since they're the best way for vloggers to achieve viral fame. Type "prank" into YouTube's search bar, and you could potentially spend the rest of your life trawling through the millions of hits, and stumble upon some seriously questionable content while you're at it.

We all recall the controversy provoked by YouTuber DaddyOFive (aka Mike Martin and his wife Heather Martin) who released a prank video in which they yelled at their kids after pouring invisible ink on their carpet. The duo were accused of child abuse and exploitation and the video has since been removed. However, now another YouTuber's channel has reportedly been suspended, after he filmed a video in which he appeared to feed his children laxatives.

Cordero James Brady, also known as "CJ So Cool", fed laxative-laced ice cream to minors in a video on his monetised channel, and the prank appeared to make the kids seriously nauseous and unwell. One of the children can even be heard moaning in pain: "my stomach hurts."  The video was promptly deleted after being flagged to YouTube by Babe.net, and social services were notified shortly thereafter.

A police spokesman involved in the incident stated: "There was a case that was investigated in 2016 involving laxatives and this individual. It was a joint investigation with Clark County Child Protective Services. It was submitted to the DAs office and it was recommended as a criminal case."

Dr Kortney Peagram, who represents the anti-child abuse charity Bulldog Solution, stated: "Harming your child on purpose with laxatives is child abuse. That’s child endangerment. [He is] harming his children and bullying them to pull pranks on each other, it is really disturbing. He’s modelling inappropriate behavior and encouraging it by laughter… He’s teaching his children that it’s okay to harm each other for a good laugh."

YouTube has since released an official statement which says: "content that endangers minors is unacceptable to us and we have strict policies prohibiting child endangerment and harmful and dangerous content. We remove content that violates our policies as soon as we’re made aware of it."

Alarmingly, this isn't the first incident where Brady has been called out for his treatment of his children. His channel, which currently boasts around 5,600,000 subscribers, also includes a video where he reduced his son to tears by pretending to destroy his Playstation, and a video where he tricked his partner into thinking that her child had drowned. So listen up: prank videos can be fun as long as they're harmless. The second that it ventures into child endangerment; that's when it's no laughing matter.

Remember the days when pranking videos weren't literally everywhere? Back in the 90s, stuff like Jackass and the Tom Green Show was seen as groundbreaking for showcasing clever, inventive pranks on TV. These pioneers were trolling others before trolling even had a name. But nowadays, with YouTube totally dominating our culture, pranking videos are ubiquitous. since they're the best way for vloggers to achieve viral fame. Type "prank" into YouTube's search bar, and you could potentially spend the rest of your life trawling through the millions of hits, and stumble upon some seriously questionable content while you're at it.

We all recall the controversy provoked by YouTuber DaddyOFive (aka Mike Martin and his wife Heather Martin) who released a prank video in which they yelled at their kids after pouring invisible ink on their carpet. The duo were accused of child abuse and exploitation and the video has since been removed. However, now another YouTuber's channel has reportedly been suspended, after he filmed a video in which he appeared to feed his children laxatives.

Cordero James Brady, also known as "CJ So Cool", fed laxative-laced ice cream to minors in a video on his monetised channel, and the prank appeared to make the kids seriously nauseous and unwell. One of the children can even be heard moaning in pain: "my stomach hurts."  The video was promptly deleted after being flagged to YouTube by Babe.net, and social services were notified shortly thereafter.

A police spokesman involved in the incident stated: "There was a case that was investigated in 2016 involving laxatives and this individual. It was a joint investigation with Clark County Child Protective Services. It was submitted to the DAs office and it was recommended as a criminal case."

Dr Kortney Peagram, who represents the anti-child abuse charity Bulldog Solution, stated: "Harming your child on purpose with laxatives is child abuse. That’s child endangerment. [He is] harming his children and bullying them to pull pranks on each other, it is really disturbing. He’s modelling inappropriate behavior and encouraging it by laughter… He’s teaching his children that it’s okay to harm each other for a good laugh."

YouTube has since released an official statement which says: "content that endangers minors is unacceptable to us and we have strict policies prohibiting child endangerment and harmful and dangerous content. We remove content that violates our policies as soon as we’re made aware of it."

Alarmingly, this isn't the first incident where Brady has been called out for his treatment of his children. His channel, which currently boasts around 5,600,000 subscribers, also includes a video where he reduced his son to tears by pretending to destroy his Playstation, and a video where he tricked his partner into thinking that her child had drowned. So listen up: prank videos can be fun as long as they're harmless. The second that it ventures into child endangerment; that's when it's no laughing matter.