We Need to Talk About Family Vloggers…Part a Billion (Actually 3)

We’ve already talked about this here, and here but! There is actually a little bit of good news on the family vlogging front. Somewhere, someone is doing something! Incredible! I’d lost hope that it was possible for bureaucracies to actually give a shit about helping people, so I am going to revel in this small moment. California has signed into law Senate Bill 764. In September…I’m behing the times. (Illinois and Mississippi have similar laws as well, WTF PA as an obvious hotspot for vlogging we should get on this.) This would require family vloggers to set aside a percentage of the minors earnings through the vlog in a trust, similar to the requirements for actors, that only the minor may access when they come of age. Even minors should be paid for humiliating themselves online! WHAT A CONCEPT!

This is a small, almost imperceptible step toward improving outcomes for these kids. A major issue it doesn’t address is that many minors do not consent to be filmed and paraded around for the internet’s’ amusement. That still needs some type of protection. Additionally, I can see so many ways for parents to try to skirt the law. Avoiding payment of any kind to the kids. If you aren’t planning on setting aside money for your children, who make you much of this money, there was already a problem.

I’d love to tell you that the vloggers living in the state reacted with nothing more than a brief statement saying, “Oh, of course we already do that. Glad to know any child not protected is now.” HAHAHAHAH. Sadly, this is one of those situations where the US, instead of acting like a country, is acting like a bunch of states in a trench coat pretending to be one. This is a state law and by god they will go somewhere where they have the parental freedom to exploit their children how they see fit…allegedly. See, as vloggers flee California en mass, they claim they are moving to a state, usually Tennessee, that better aligns with their values. And this does make sense. Most are very conservative.

Though the timing is incredibly suspect, it’s impossible to know for sure. I’d argue having a vlog that features your child’s intimate moments and regularly features them as content is already child exploitation and isn’t appropriate. I still don’t know what is the okay amount to include your children in a vlog. Maybe it’s none, but I don’t mind creators who occasionally share a birthday moment or something small. Once in a while. You can share your parenting experiences WITHOUT filming your children having a tantrum or learning about sex. You can share that without filming your children at all, actually. Maybe do that just to be safe.

We all need to keep in mind that these channels exist because millions of people watch them. Freaking millions. The kids are the product they are selling to us. Without the market, they wouldn’t have channels. Hate watching is just as valuable to them as anything else. Maybe more. If you agree these kids shouldn’t be on camera from diapers to college, the best thing you can do is stop watching.

Don’t forget to check out Sheri Franke’s (Of 8 Passengers) Book The House of My Mother. (Still at #3 on Amazon, way to go Sheri, I hope nothing but healing for you)

Additionally, if you are interested, there is a new documentary about the Franke family you can watch on Hulu called Devil in the Family. I haven’t seen it yet as Hulu is like, the one thing I don’t have but if I might hit up my parents to watch it. Then this series can continue in perpetuity. Maybe it will end with the children actually being protected. Hey, a girl can dream.