Penn State Fraternity Suspended After Attack on Ohio State Students was Seen on YouTube

With social networking sites continuing to climb in popularity on the internet, a few have risen to the top. YouTube is one of those sites- designed to allow average people to share videos and clips with others, it has evolved into a source that even newscasters refer to during broadcasts. Now, YouTube has added another feather to its figurative cap- it is being used to catch criminals.

On October 27, 2007, Ohio State University's football team traveled to State College, Pennsylvania to meet up with rival Penn State. As with any college game, many Ohio State fans made the trip to cheer on their team. Two Ohio State fans who are members of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity (nicknamed "Pike,") came into town Friday night to visit the Penn State Chapter of the same fraternity. While they were welcomed Friday, the tension of game day rivalry deemed too much for the Nittany Lions fans to handle, and when the Ohio State fraternity members returned to the house, they were harassed by crowds outside the Pike house. They were verbally harassed, and had various objects, including full beer cans, thrown at them.

While I am sure that this is not the first incidence of harassment of football fans between schools, this one in particular has made waves because this rather disturbing event was not only filmed, but it was uploaded to YouTube, where millions of people have access to it. The student behind the camera has been identified as the vice-president of the Pike Chapter at Penn State, and since investigations have started, their charter has been suspended not only by Penn State, but also by the national organization.

Ironically, the first charges in the case have been filed against a University of Pittsburgh student who was visiting Penn State. Richard Eisenberger Jr., was shown on the video throwing objects at the Ohio State fans, and then being cheered on for his efforts. Eisenberger will face summary harassment and disorderly conduct charges in the attack. Investigations into identifying other individuals caught on video are still ongoing.

Many football fans are not hugely surprised that these events transpired. Heated rivalries are too often taken to an unsavory level, especially when alcohol is often times factored into the equation. The surprise in this case comes from the fact that the Penn State students thought nothing of uploading the video demonstrating their actions to YouTube, where it can be seen by so many. Did they seriously think there would be no consequences for their actions? Worse yet, did the Penn Staters think that there was nothing wrong with their actions?

I highly doubt this will be a wake up call to the vast population out there who will continue to post photos or videos of underage students consuming alcohol, committing illegal acts, and yes, even harassing rival football fans . What I do hope for however, is to see a trend where law enforcement continues to make strides in using these internet sources to limit this deplorable behavior.