published in 2008

During the height of the album’s popularity, British tabloid Daily Mail characterized the band and their fans as an emo ” cult of self-harm ” and published articles regarding the band with intentionally inflammatory headlines. One such article, “Why No Child is Safe From the Sinister Cult of Emo”, published in 2008, linked the suicide of a thirteen-year-old British girl to an alleged “emo cult”, which the tabloid used to characterize My Chemical Romance’s fandom. In response to the newspaper’s coverage of the band, over 300 British fans planned a protest march throughout London, ending at the tabloid’s office. However, after concerns from the police, the march was called off, and about 100 fans instead congregated at Marble Arch . The Daily Mail defended their position and coverage of the band, saying that it was “balanced and restrained”, “in the public interest”, and that they were reporting genuine concerns raised by the coroner at the inquest. They pointed to other newspapers publishing such stories at the time, as well as to their publishing of readers’ letters defending the band and positive reviews of the band’s albums and tours.