Nothing. That's my answer. Absolutely nothing. A lot of adults lately seem to be asking that question after an honor roll student was beaten and killed by a group of teens in the streets of Chicago. Sure, it was a terrible incident. It involved a lack of judgement on the part of the teens who participated in the violence. The beating can even be considered heinous. Does that mean that kids today are more disturbed than those ten, twenty, even thirty years ago?
Probably not.
Instead of asking what's wrong with all kids when we see things like this, we need to ask what's wrong with those particular kids. There a number of answers, but none of them seem to be as satisfying to the critics as making generalizations about teenagers as a whole.
It's time to stop blaming and start changing. If adults want to see change, if they think kids are that bad, then get out and volunteer. If teens want to make a difference, then do it. Strive to eliminate violence. Help underprivileged kids get an education. Be an advocate and show the world that teens can make a difference.
For the most part teens are just trying to get by day to day. Christian teens try to live righteously through their faith. Most non-believers try to live by their own moral standards. Young or old, there are alway people who deviate from morality, there is always evil in the world. We should not allow evil to create stereotypes. We should use these types of stories to encourage us to make the difference God created us to make.