This article is rated Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale. It is of interest to the following WikiProjects:

Culture Low‑importance This article is within the scope of WikiProject Culture, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of culture on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.CultureWikipedia:WikiProject CultureTemplate:WikiProject Cultureculture Low This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale. Skepticism Low‑importance This article is within the scope of WikiProject Skepticism, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of science, pseudoscience, pseudohistory and skepticism related articles on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.SkepticismWikipedia:WikiProject SkepticismTemplate:WikiProject SkepticismSkepticism Low This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale. Sociology Low‑importance This article is within the scope of WikiProject Sociology, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of sociology on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.SociologyWikipedia:WikiProject SociologyTemplate:WikiProject Sociologysociology Low This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale.

Please comment at Talk:Clown#Dressed as a clown vs. a clown. Thanks. Anna Frodesiak (talk) 06:53, 2 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I would say yes. Unlike vampires or werewolves, Clowns are humans in Clown Costumes. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.34.91.243 (talk) 03:12, 3 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I disagree. If someone robs a bank dressed as a clown, they are a bankrobber. A clown is an entertainer.--Jack Upland (talk) 08:47, 24 November 2021 (UTC)[reply]

It just scary new greatest fear and have u guys seen the short where a YouTuber was followed by a clown and almost made it in the house it freaked me out no no no way 75.100.155.127 (talk) 19:40, 1 July 2023 (UTC)[reply]

This is all over social media. Because of threats there of real creepy clowns coming to get people, schools have been closed. Can this go in the article somehow? Within the scope? Anna Frodesiak (talk) 07:26, 2 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I'm confused about the where the locations are.

Convenience link: 2016 clown sightings#England

Anna Frodesiak (talk) 01:19, 5 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I see a bit about sightings there but the sources are a joke. Anyone? Anna Frodesiak (talk) 00:12, 6 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

After asking for input at Talk:Clown#Dressed as a clown vs. a clown, it seems that we need to change eg. "...a clown allegedly..." to "...a person dressed as a clown allegedly...".

Cheers, Anna Frodesiak (talk) 05:17, 7 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I feel like I’m an awful long way down the rabbit hole, and I can’t find the way back up!Roxy, the dog. wooF 15:47, 11 July 2019 (UTC)[reply]

Page views:

• 201bnmmb
• 2016 10 02: 1,019
• 2016 10 03: 5,922
• 2016 10 04: 10,658
• 2016 10 05: 13,213
• 2016 10 06: 18,534
• 2016 10 07: 16,722
• 2016 10 08: 18,091
• 2016 10 09: 18,718
• 2016 10 10: 17,784

(source)

Anna Frodesiak (talk) 12:30, 8 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Somebody removed the section about Clown Lives Matter, saying it was tangential or trivia. While I agree it doesn't need its own section, I do think it's reasonable that it ought to have a place in the article, given that the march in question is a clear and obvious response to the phenomenon described in the article. Thoughts? ProfessorTofty (talk) 13:07, 8 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

There's a professional journalistic secondary source on it, so it's not completely trivial or tangential. If we're going with the standard "it's local news," then this article probably needs to be reduced to the South Carolina incident with a "copycat" section. Ian.thomson (talk) 06:04, 10 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

A horror movie called ClownTown (2016) was released on Sept 30, 2016 http://http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4577344, plus you can see the trailer also https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUS3NEsuqUk. Their Facebook page can be found here https://www.facebook.com/clowntownthemovie. The plot is a basic horror movie plot where weirdos dress up as scary clowns and stalk young teens walking about town. Since it was released at the same time as the sightings seem to have started this could be a monkey see, monkey do thing. Since I did not knew this film existed since it was released only through digital download and DVD/Bluray. I am starting to think we have been gagged by people watching this movie. 71.231.27.228 (talk) 05:58, 10 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Any sort of claims of influence or relation one way or another would require secondary or tertiary sources, not original research. Plus, the clown sightings started a month before ClownTown came out. Unless it was shot on some sort of brand new Tachyon-vision film, I don't see how it inspired stuff that happened a month before. Coincidence or cash-grab seem more likely. Plus, what kind of dumb robots would humanity have to be for this to become a thing because of some schlocky dreck?

Also, further linking to primary sources may be construed as attempts to advertise the movie. Ian.thomson (talk) 06:03, 10 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Really, I have to ask: How did a movie that almost noone has seen cause people who are high-functioning enough to be able to afford clown costumes to buy said costumes five weeks before the movie was released? Ian.thomson (talk) 06:13, 10 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Person wanted to know if the movie ClownTown was a source inspiration? Is this a marketing stunt for Rob Zombie's 31? or people pulling a joke on us? is this a political statement? or people trying to make Scary Clowns the new movement to make political protest like Zombies are used about the state of economy? ClownTown could have been a inspiration for people and had been on the internet since it has been on youtube all summer as a trailer. But Rob Zombie new movie could have been the source also. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Kingsing (talk • contribs)

@Kingsing: Do not remove old comments. Wikipedia does not use original research and does not engage in speculation. Talk pages are not a forum for general discussion, they are for article improvement. If you continue to focus on ClownTown, it will become pretty hard to not think that you're here to promote that movie. The Rob Zombie movie is mentioned because there are professionally-published mainstream journalistic sources that suggest that possibility. You need to cite such sources (or academic sources) for any suggestion that the clown craze is a political movement or that some movie that almost no one has seen somehow inspired this. Ian.thomson (talk) 07:20, 10 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

The article states that clowns were sighted in "over half of US states, eight out of ten Canadian provinces, and nine other countries." Not including the US and Canada, I only counted eight. This also can't include the individual nations of the UK, because that would bring it over nine. What is the other country? Does anybody know? Also, what about the clown scare of 1981? I remember reading a lot of books, articles, and webpages on this, but cannot find it on Wikipedia. I don't personally think I should create the page, because I don't know enough about it, but could someone else please do so? Sea Captain Cormac 19:32, 12 October 2016 (UTC)

The German article says so. Anna Frodesiak (talk) 08:54, 18 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Actually, I think that's Sweden and Germany. I was close.

Do we need one talking about previous years? Anna Frodesiak (talk) 09:14, 18 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

• If the goal is to document every local news report or Facebook post about clowns, then certainly. Other questions--the moment it's 2017 and we see a clown, is this article going to be renamed? Or will it be clear that this was nothing more than an ongoing fad, which has in fact existed for years? And if "clown sightings" is in quotation marks in the lead, why not in the title? Drmies (talk) 22:53, 1 November 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Already present in the article, see "precursor sightings".--Ollyoxenfree (talk) 00:11, 3 November 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I believe this article should be renamed something akin to "2016 clown sighting mass hysteria" or "2016 clown sighting panic", reflecting more accurately that this is a case of mass hysteria than anything to genuinely worry about. People have as much to fear from this as they do the bogeyman. --Therealelizacat (talk) 09:56, 3 November 2016 (UTC)[reply]

• I decided to be bold and go ahead and do the move. --Therealelizacat (talk) 10:00, 3 November 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Does the article currently have a single reliable source that uses the phrase, and defines, "mass hysteria"? This title now suggests that many, if not all, the sightings were imagined? Martinevans123 (talk) 10:22, 3 November 2016 (UTC)[reply]

This is publicity stunt for S.K. IT remake! 2600:8807:580D:EF00:F56A:FF45:CD0B:C5 (talk) 07:05, 2 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

^{[citation needed]}. Ian.thomson (talk) 07:10, 2 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I'd hold off on that page move until we see more sources using "panic" or "hysteria" than "sighting". Anna Frodesiak (talk) 07:25, 2 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Clown Sightings trend arrives Israel a year late after the world while the movie It been screening in the country. This phenomenon started in the northern town Afula and spread quickly. One "clown" even attack 10 years old with paper gas in Be'er Sheva.[1] This is now being covered widely by national media outlets. One 15 years old girl stabbed by a man dressing as a clown in Tel Mond.[2]

^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21]}

If notable, this would be better placed on a new article, like 2017 clown sightings,--Auric talk 20:29, 3 October 2017 (UTC)[reply]

I think its notable, its still ongoing though. I'm preferring that someone else would verify notability. Sokuya (talk) 08:55, 4 October 2017 (UTC)[reply]

I see no problem with adding these. I don't think we need a separate article, this article can be renamed if needed. As it stands, the article makes it seem like this was a 2016 thing after some minor wording changes I made due to the lack of any info or refs on anything post 2016. Nil Einne (talk) 16:37, 3 May 2018 (UTC)[reply]

It's 2024 and they are back i have seen 4 clowns and i am really afraid of them 47.219.0.164 (talk) 08:58, 12 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Canadian pornographic website Pornhub reported that between mid-September and mid-October, there were 100,000 clown related searches, a 213% increase. Another pornographic website Xhamster reported a 50% increase in clown porn.

I know from experience with another article that Pornhub puts out a report related to every event from royal weddings to missile scares. Is this really relevant? It seems to be just self-promotion.--Jack Upland (talk) 08:37, 16 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

I have removed this.--Jack Upland (talk) 10:13, 4 October 2018 (UTC)[reply]

• In Narellan, a person dressed as a clown was pictured sitting on a roadside electrical box.^[1]
• In October a picture, supposedly taken in Ghent, Belgium circulated Flemish media showing a "killer clown" standing by the side of the road. The picture was later proved to be from the United States.^[2]
• In Winnipeg, rumors of sightings were reported at Collège Sturgeon Heights Collegiate. This prompted St. James-Assiniboia School Division to start an investigation about reports, they concluded that the image was just an accidental image taken of a student in a nearby field.^[3]
• In Drimnagh, Dublin, a clown with red balloons was spotted...
• That same night, The Times reported, a man in Whitehaven, Cumbria was dressing as Batman and "vowing to chase down the creepy clowns... seemingly chas[ed] off a 'killer clown'" which had been appearing in the locality.^[4]
• Clowns were rumored to be lurking around UConn, although police reported this to be a hoax.

This is trivial. This article seems to be dedicated to documenting any real or imagined or invented clown sighting anywhere in the world in 2016.--Jack Upland (talk) 08:52, 16 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

I have removed these examples. I note that the "Incidents" section is now tagged for clean-up, which is a good thing.--Jack Upland (talk) 01:30, 7 October 2018 (UTC)[reply]

By October 25, 2016, several news outlets reported on an alleged clown-initiated "purge" or "attack", which supposedly was to take place on Halloween Eve of 2016. Most of these threats were disseminated through social media. Police departments in various locations have insisted that while no credible threats exist, parents and children should use caution when out on Halloween Eve and Halloween. Police departments in regions affected by the "purge" threats have cautioned residents not to make fear-based attacks on anyone simply because they are dressed in clown attire, but go on to say that any clowns exhibiting bizarre or threatening behavior should be reported immediately to the proper authorities.^[1][2][3]

Three citations are not enough to justify this paragraph.--Jack Upland (talk) 10:10, 4 October 2018 (UTC)[reply]

I've shortened this.--Jack Upland (talk) 08:46, 8 November 2018 (UTC)[reply]