Family Vlogging: Child Exploitation.

Your first steps, your meltdowns, even your first words. All of it captured, edited, and then published online for the entertainment of millions of watchers, strangers you have never met. From the day of you birth, those huge milestones, hospital visits, struggles, and emotions that were supposed to be things kept between you and your family. But, instead they are shared, dissected, and monetized.

This is the reality for many children. Their parents document their lives for their family vlogging channels to gain fame and success. These children are often called "Truman babies," they are raised under the eyes of the internet. Every action is used for profit, they have little to no control on how these stories are told. Unable to consent to their image being posted online, how they are portrayed. Their very existence is instead sold as content for viewers.

Children are exploited for the financial gain of their parents and the entertainment of thousands to millions of individuals. It is a new form of child labor. Unlike what we know as traditional child labor, the family vlogging industry lacks clear regulations to protect these children and their well-being, as well as protecting them from financial exploitation and predatory behavior. States such as Illinois, Minnesota, and California have started to pass laws that regulate earnings, setting aside trust funds for those children being used in influencer content, but, the laws still fail to address the deeper ethical and legal issues that surround family vlogging.

The Rise of Family Vlogging

In 2008, Shay Butler, a father from Idaho, started the family vlog channel on YouTube: Shaytards. He started to upload videos of his family daily on the platform and the channel is widely regarded as the first family YouTube channel. This popularized the concept of sharing daily family life with an audience.

The Shaytards channel offered a window into the Butler children's lives. Allowing viewers from around the world to watch as they achieved milestones, had celebrations, and even struggled. It gave the audience a sense of connection to the family, they weren't just watching the vlogs, they felt as if they were part of the family, developing deep parasocial relationships that fueled the channel's popularity. The views grew, as did the advertising revenue and sponsorships, eventually allowing Shay Butler to turn family vlogging into his full-time job.

The success of the channel started to influence many other parents to build careers that were based on the lives of their children. It was a lucrative business for many families. But, it wasn't like traditional media, they weren't being paid in fixed salaries, but their income was dependent on the number of clicks, shares, and likes. If their channel was growing in popularity, they were securing more income through ads, sponsors, and brand deals. Family vlogging channels are sought out by companies because it opens the doors to a massive base of easily impressionable consumers: children.

The success of Shaytards didn't just mark the beginning of the era of family vlogging, it also set a precedent for the unregulated exposure of children in monetized content. Every moment, no matter how private or intimate, was commodity. What once was a personal family journey was now a business model.

Financial Exploitation

The primary source of income for these channels was coming from the children, their personal moments becoming the sole commodity fueling the channel's success. Parents would quit their jobs when their channel was gaining enough revenue to support the family. One former child of a family vlogging channel even stated that after their channel was popular enough for her parents to do just that, her father was no longer just her father, he was her boss. He blurred the lines between parental authority and business control. Her childhood was intertwined with the family's financial success.

Even with the luxuries such as sponsored vacations or a larger home, there are darker consequences to the success of a family vlogging channel. Children that are featured in the channels have little to no control on how their lives are being portrayed and monetized, and they are very often deprived of any compensation for their involvement. Leaving the children with emotional toll, and tragically, in some cases can lead to actual abuse for refusing to appear in content or for not performing for the camera in a way that would bring the channel viewers. While not every family vlogger engages in physical abuse or coercion, the act of vlogging in itself constitutes an inherent form of exploitation. These children are treated as commodities, their lives used for profit, and often they do not consent to putting all their personal moments online forever. With the industry's lack of regulation, children are left vulnerable, having no control over how their money is earned, how it is spent, or if they will even see any of the profits.

Family vlogging continues to grow in popularity, so these stories are not isolated. Parents will often argue that they are saving the income they are earning for the children's future, but in reality there are few guarantees or mechanisms in place to ensure that this is happening and that they children are benefiting from the wealth earned by their own image. As the family vlogging industry rapidly grows, stricter legal protections are being called upon to ensure that children's rights are being protected, allowing them to have control over their own image, and that they will receive a fair share of the money earned from their participation.

Emotional And Developmental Risks

The effects of social media on young users is well documented, but the effects of growing up as a child featured in a family vlogging channel lacks deeper examination. They are pressured to perform, lose their personal privacy, and are put under relentless scrutiny of an online audience. This shapes their sense of self, potentially deeply damaging them as an individual. Yet, we still don't understand the long-term consequences.

Everything that is shared, how it is shared, and the portrayal of their children are all left up to the parents, completely beyond the child's control. Many are publicly embarrassed, disciplined, and even manipulated on camera for reactions, these videos garner millions of views, so, this leaves parents in a cycle of exploiting these moments for profit. These moments often are popular on snark pages on platforms such as Reddit, it is on these pages that strangers dissect and mock the lives of these children's lives. This exposes them to ridicule on a massive scale.

A popular subreddit that is dedicated to the LaBrant family has over 44,000 posters who scrutinize the family daily, not just the parents, but their children as well. These communities will often claim to be advocating for children's privacy, but they often fall into exploitative patterns, so snarky posts about the appearances of children or speech patterns become popular. Moderators of the forums will acknowledge the ethical concerns of these discussions, many even plead for members to seize these sort of conversations as a whole, but all to little avail, leaving the children to remain the focal point of the communities.

Constant exposure can distort normal childhood development. Those raised in front of a camera can struggle to separate their true selves from the personas crafted by their parents for the camera. They often don't engage in natural play, they don't form private memories, and they can't make mistakes in a safe space, it is instead dictated by content creation. There is also a shift in family relationships, their parents are no longer that, instead they become managers, a dynamic that can lead to resentment, emotional detachment, and loss of trust.

Private details are often shared online, such as where a child is going to school, if they have a medical condition and what the condition is, and even what they fear; the long-term consequences often not considered. There is no laws regarding a parent exposing their children's most personal information. This can lead to the child being vulnerable to exploitation, cyberbullying, and the everlasting effects of a permanent digital footprint that they had zero control over creating. As the child grows up, they often are unable to escape the content that defined their childhood, still leaving them under the lens of public scrutiny.

A child can grow up without a sense of personal autonomy, they are burdened to perform for an audience they never asked for. The urgent need for protections has never been more dire.

Boundaries And Consent

Even in cases where a parent is asking their child for permission to appear in vlogs or other social media content, the child is almost never in a position to give informed consent, especially those who are under the age of 12. Young children are still in the process of developing an understanding of privacy, discovering their personal boundaries, and the consequences of their actions on the internet are. They might not grasp the idea that once someone is posted online that it is nearly impossible to remove it entirely, it can be copied, shared, and spread; this makes it difficult for the child to regain control over their own image.

Children are still exploring and shaping their identities, they are also still in the process of understanding what consent is. Even if they are asked to "agree" to participate in these videos or photos, they do so without actually comprehending what the repercussions are, they do not understand how their image may be used by strangers or how it might be monetized, and that it may expose them to exploitation. Most children are offered little say in the matter. Parents can frame it as some fun and harmless activity, but the overwhelming pressure to comply is present in the child. There is an unspoken demand to please their parents, that they need to participate even when they are uncomfortable.

This makes it so the child is unable to assert their boundaries. The presence of their children on social media is an economic incentive for the parent. It drives them to gain sponsorships and advertisements; furthering the exploitation. Children may feel that they need to provide content, and if they don't their family will no longer be able to survive, so even when they don't want to appear in the vlogs, they feel obligated.

Even a well-intended parent, one who believes they're engaging in harmless, family fun, are potentially violating their children's privacy and autonomy.

Predation of Minors

This leads us to one of the darkest corners of the reality of children's lives being posted online. The deeply disturbing issue of the sexualization and exploitation of minors. In our increasingly digital world, there are many children who are being unknowingly put into the spotlight where their innocence is being used not only for profit, but for adult gratification. Images of someone's child, the moments of innocence, and activities are often manipulated in order to satisfy adult desires, exposing them to harmful cycles of objectification. There are long-lasting effects of this, including children developing a distorted sense of self-worth, they start to associate their value with online approval.

One highly discussed example is that of Piper Rockelle, she was thrown into the world of social media at nine years old. She was featured on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. At first, the content seemed lighthearted, made for a younger audience, but it was also attracting a significant adult audience as well. As she grew up, her videos were shifting, including one titled "FIRST KISS ON CAMERA," one that gained nearly 50 million views. Other videos featured titles like "I BECAME A BABY FOR A DAY" and "LAST TO STOP KISSING BOYFRIEND WINS $10,000" both racking up nearly 10 million views. On the other platforms, such as TikTok and Instagram, she posted suggestive movements and clothing, this was blurring the lines between her original young audience and her growing adult audience. By 2022, she was bringing in $4.2 to $7.2 million per year.

Things shifted when she visited the "Bop House," at 17-years-old. This was a collective of popular Onlyfans creators. She would film TikToks with the members, the collaborations had suggestive captions and featured dances just as suggestive; this led many to believe that her content was now strictly targeting her adult audience. She also launched a paid fan club called Club Piper, it was here that her subscribers, mostly adult males, paid for exclusive content featuring her in bikinis and chatted with her directly on her Twitch streams. She then took things completely towards adult content by launching her Onlyfans once she turned 18, claiming she earned $2.9 million dollars in just 24 hours of launching it. She even answers the question of why she joined the platform and is so popular on it by saying: "The answer is kind of gross, it's because I look so young. I am really young, I'm literally like fresh turned 18, and people kind of like that, unfortunately."

There are fingers pointed at her mother, Tiffany Smith, shedding a light on an even more troubling dynamic. She has been accused of creating an abusive environment for the other creators that worked with her and Piper, better known as The Squad. A lawsuit was filed and settled for $1.85 million dollars, the creators alleging they underwent emotional, verbal, and sometimes sexual abuse, this included highly inappropriate and sexually explicit comments and sexual assault by Tiffany Smith. Other reports show videos where Tiffany is instructing Piper and other members to pose in suggestive ways, even emphasizing that content like it would attract more views and bring in more money. This highlights the horrific and unacceptable behavior that comes along with the exploitation of children for financial gain.

Cases of this type of sexual exploitation isn't limited to Piper Rockelle, it extends to countless children. Ones who find themselves trapped in the endless cycle of exploitation. It can be as simple as parents posting videos of their children playing Twister, practicing gymnastics, and even swimming; the comments featuring strangers timestamping moments of "suggestive" moments. Moments as innocent as a child doing the splits are quietly placed into an ecosystem of predation. This further forces the child into a world where their body is scrutinized by those strangers online, they aren't being viewed for who they are, but if and how they can be used for adult forms of pleasure.

The issue can be further complicated with the rise of family-managed Instagram accounts. Parents create and manage their child's social media profiles in order to gain another form of income, draw in more brand deals, and elicit more sponsorships. Even those accounts that are being promoted as family fun are inviting the risk of comments, messages, or an exchange that crosses the line.

Momagers

This is a popular term used for a mother who acts as the business manager for her child. She is the one often managing the finances, publicity, and partnerships with brands and other child influencers. One popular 'momager' Elissa, managers her young child's account that has gained over 100,000 followers. The profile features images of her child modeling dresses, dancewear, and fitness apparel. While her daughter's popularity has led to countless brand deals, the content also appears to appeal to countless pedophiles. Many who show no shame and leave comments on the posts, "Great Body," and even "Mmmm take that bikini off." If I need to clarify again, this is a on a young child's photos. These comments further emphasize that more people need to be concerned about privacy and the unintended exposure of children to inappropriate adult audiences.

There was an investigation done by The New York times, it revealed that among 5,000 accounts featuring child influencers, there was a staggering 32 million connections between these children and adult male followers. Many comments on posts featured on such accounts thanked the 'momagers' for allowing them to view suggestive content legally. If it wasn't already bad enough, Instagram launched paid subscriptions in 2022, allowing followers to pay a monthly fee to access exclusive content chose by the creator. The subscription system is prohibited for those under 18, but many mom-run accounts are able to get passed this restriction since the account is technically being ran by an adult. There are dozens of accounts of young influencers that charge upwards of $19.99 for these subscriptions, featuring "ask-me-anything" chat sessions and behind-the-scene photos. Men make up 35% of Instagram users as a whole, but most of these child influencers have an audience of 75% men. Many of these male followers are the ones paying for the subscriptions. And many of them have been charged with and/or convicted of sex crimes against children.

It is not an issue of merely poor moderation or bad parenting. It is a systemic failure, a failure to protect those who are the most vulnerable. Whether the parents are willfully ignorant or knowingly profiting, they are sacrificing their child's privacy to peruse an audience and money. Social media platforms fuel the cycle, the algorithms handfeeding content revolving around children to those who should not have access to it. There are reports of mothers that try to limit male followers having trouble blocking unwanted interactions, this is due to platforms limiting the number of accounts you can block in a given period, this means that social media companies are also complicit. It is unlikely that these social media companies will ever create penetrative measures to protect these children, this is more than likely due to the fact they are also heavily profiting off of young children, bringing in an annual income of nearly 11 billion dollars from ad revenue on child and/or family vlogger content, this is across all platforms.

Former child influencers have started to speak out about the lasting trauma of being raised in front of an audience. Many say that the fame was not a gift, but in reality it was a burden they couldn't escape. A former child vlogger discussed their career on a reddit community called: r/TrueOffMyChest under the username: imonlineforever. She discusses how her family started vlogging in 2013 after a video of her brother ended up going viral. Detailing how she wasn't a fan of it since the beginning, she was shy and didn't fit in with the image her parents wanted from her and her siblings. She also disclosed in the 2-year-old post that she wanted to raise awareness regarding family vlogging and how damaging it is, but doesn't wish for anyone to guess and seek out who she is. She discloses how at the peak, her parents' channel had around two million subscribers and the main demographic was adult men, and now as an adult she has realized that was because the content was being catered towards said men. She was one of five girls in her family, each sibling a year apart, and in the five years of the vlogging, it was a goldmine for her parents. They would post videos detailing the girls' menstrual cycles, vlog about them getting their first bras, first kisses, etc. All things that was a massive hit with predators. She also discusses how they would end up being homeschooled in order to stop external distractions and they weren't allowed to make friends, unless they were willing to be part of the channel. Her parents would only post the good things, displaying a perfect family for the camera, but in reality, her father was abusing her mother, having constant arguments, and even went on to have an affair behind the scenes. The channel came to an abrupt end when her mother found out about said affair and the two got divorced, but nobody online ever found out about this.

The Reddit user also discloses that her parents would use all the money they were earning through the vlog channel on drinking, drugs, and going on vacations without the kids.

Relevant Laws and Statutes

There is a legal framework to protect children's rights online, but there are still gaps in these protections, especially regarding the control parents have over their children's online presence. The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) provide some broad protections, but fail to address the challenges that come along with family vlogging.

Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)

COPPA was created to protect children's online privacy, regulating the collection of personal data coming from children under the age of 13 form corporations.

Some key provisions:

Section 312.5: Websites and online services must obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting personal data from children under 13. Even with this in place, it does not regulate parents' ability to share their young children's personal information online.

Section 312.10: COPPA mandates that online services delete a child's personal data when it is no longer needed for its intended purpose. This provision does not apply to any content that parents post about their children. COPPA does not grant children the right to request to delete said content.

Convention on Rights of Child

CRC is an international treaty that sets out the fundamental rights of children, such as protections for their civil, political, economic, social, and cultural well-being. It was first signed in 1989, the United States is the only eligible country that did not ratify this treaty. Meaning that it has no legal standing here.

There are several articles within the CRC that are relevant to the issues of children's participation on social media:

Article 3: This particular article emphasizes that decisions affecting children should prioritize their best interests. It supports stronger regulations in order to prevent exploitation, such as excessive work hours, coercion, or financial abuse. But, due to there being any clear legal enforcement, parents and social media platforms are still able to easily bypass accountability. With the lack of defined standards on what actually defines exploitation online it complicates efforts to protect children from being overexposed.

Article 12: This article recognizes that children who are capable of forming their own views should also have the right to express them in matters that affect them. CRC highlights the ethical importance of a child's perspective being considered in the terms of their digital presence, but again, without any legal mechanisms to enforce these rights, as well as many young children not having the ability to provide informed consent, they remain vulnerable to their parent's decisions that prioritize content creation over their well-being.

Article 16: This section protects children from unwarranted intrusions into their personal life, including exposure that could harm their dignity or reputation. Even with the provision suggesting that children should be shielded from overexposure, there is a lack of specific guidelines, however, this leads to difficulty determining what constitutes a violation. Parents could justify vlogging content as harmless or that it is beneficial, while social media platforms don't intervene due to how the viral content provides them with their own revenue.

State Laws on Child Influencer Protections

There are several states as it stands that have enacted or proposed laws to safeguard influencers' earnings and privacy. As it stands today, there are sixteen states that introduced legislation requiring trust accounts being made for child influencers, it all started with the pioneering laws in Illinois, Minnesota, and California. The most important law that started protecting children in the spotlight is California's historic Coogan Law that was enacted in 1939 after child star Jackie Coogan realized that most of the money he was making as a child actor was gone, at this time, any money a minor made in the state of California was legally their parents. In 2024, the law was amended to clarify that it includes minors that are employed as content creators. Other states have similar laws relating to child actors, but, Illinois was the first state to pass a law that specifically protects the earnings of YouTube vloggers under 16.

Illinois's law requires that parents place a portion of earnings made by their children into a trust if said child is appearing in at least 30% of monetized videos of the family. It also requires content creators to maintain financial records that detail the child's involvement in said videos and to provide access to these records upon request. Illinois also grants minors a private right of action, this means that the child can sue if their earnings are being withheld.

Minnesota's law mirrors Illinois's, it came into effect on July 1st, 2025. However, it introduces some additional provisions, including prohibiting minors under the age of 14 from engaging in content creation, and it mandates that content creators delete content upon request from the child featured or an adult who was a child when said content was made.

Protect the Children

Parental control over children's digital presence should be thoroughly reexamined. Parents have such a vital role to their child's development, and they have the right to raise kids in a manner they deem appropriate, but monetizing a child's image should be subject to external oversights.

A ban on child influencers would be an ideal solution, but it is unrealistic, especially during this day in age where social media continues to grow. But, focusing on implementing regulations that could help protect these children from the consequences of the digital world.