By: Yolanda Brooks
The phenomenon of family vlogging began on YouTube in 2008. Channels like the Shaytards were one of a few channels that started filming daily lifestyle vlogs. Though it seems like a fun pastime and way to connect with family while earning passive income, many are starting to realize the irreversible detrimental damage it causes.
One family-based channel in Utah popularly known as the 8 Passengers recently has been all over the news and not for good reasons. The mother, Ruby Franke, is married to Kevin Franke, and they have six kids hence the reason their channel is called 8 Passengers. Everything on their channel seemed “normal” though occasionally they were under fire for invasive videos such as the ones surrounding the topic of puberty. Not only that but Ruby would discipline her kids on camera which ultimately hurt the kids' overtime. In other videos Ruby would blatantly talk about certain topics and her kids were visibly uncomfortably yet, their mother kept filming. Sadie Estes, a senior at Hillgrove Highschool believes, “that the level of exposure in the world forces you to grow up quickly and does not let you be a child and be free from being judged and freedom to run around. It makes you more self-aware, judged, and restricted” So the real question is, is there enough protection against minors being exploited online?
Before their channel was deleted, they amassed 2.5 million subscribers and nearly a thousand videos. Three years ago, the mother joined a mental help group called Connextions founded by Jodi Hildebrant. Together, they would work together and eventually began to merge lives as Ruby moved into Jodi’s home as her husband moved out. Together, they would film videos giving parents and couples advice on parenting and it was already suspicious enough as Jodi’s license was put on probation for a little over a year but despite that many either ignored or were unaware and continued to follow along. A senior, Joel Kniola states his view on the topic as he is aware of their drama from Tiktok: “Rather than making it your whole entire life, maybe you should just really capture what is happening than making it your personality. He further comments, “I feel like no matter what there is always a money incentive to it but I do feel like there is a difference of stuff that does not need to be discussed nor shown especially involving your own kids.” Attention and wealth are a huge drive for most content creators so where do we truly draw the line? Money can drive people to do things that do not align with their morals.
Ruby along with other clients began applying the advice to her personal life and later it was revealed that their approach was ultimately toxic. Despite the backlash, Ruby along with Jodi continued to create videos and ultimately led to their downfall on August 31, 2023, as they both were arrested on child abuse charges. NBC was one of the several news outlets to explore and cover the story discussing the dangers and how unexpecting it was especially how “perfect Mormon family” they portrayed themselves to be. For sophomore student Cedar Greene she concludes, “There is invasive and inappropriate details like first period and first time shaving that may seem educational but they are very personal “ and furthermore states, “If the kid says the do not want to be filmed then they should not that is where the line should be drawn” The same footage she used and posted onto her channel is now being used against her. The real question is why did it take this long for actions to be taken? Despite this unfortunate circumstance family vlogging is not going to discontinue as Joel mentions, “You can discourage exploitation of minor by holding people accountable while it is happening not waiting to later like the have the footage but always trying to hold people accountable as soon as possible.” At the end of the day the decision whether more legal action should be in place to protect children is a discussion are government has failed to assess and protect celebrity children, and any other kids with online attention.
Family vlogging is a current ongoing hot topic that has a lot of negative and positive aspects in regard to money, wealth, fame, and exploitation of children.
The phenomenon of family vlogging began on YouTube in 2008. Channels like the Shaytards were one of a few channels that started filming daily lifestyle vlogs. Though it seems like a fun pastime and way to connect with family while earning passive income, many are starting to realize the irreversible detrimental damage it causes.
One family-based channel in Utah popularly known as the 8 Passengers recently has been all over the news and not for good reasons. The mother, Ruby Franke, is married to Kevin Franke, and they have six kids hence the reason their channel is called 8 Passengers. Everything on their channel seemed “normal” though occasionally they were under fire for invasive videos such as the ones surrounding the topic of puberty. Not only that but Ruby would discipline her kids on camera which ultimately hurt the kids' overtime. In other videos Ruby would blatantly talk about certain topics and her kids were visibly uncomfortably yet, their mother kept filming. Sadie Estes, a senior at Hillgrove Highschool believes, “that the level of exposure in the world forces you to grow up quickly and does not let you be a child and be free from being judged and freedom to run around. It makes you more self-aware, judged, and restricted” So the real question is, is there enough protection against minors being exploited online?
Before their channel was deleted, they amassed 2.5 million subscribers and nearly a thousand videos. Three years ago, the mother joined a mental help group called Connextions founded by Jodi Hildebrant. Together, they would work together and eventually began to merge lives as Ruby moved into Jodi’s home as her husband moved out. Together, they would film videos giving parents and couples advice on parenting and it was already suspicious enough as Jodi’s license was put on probation for a little over a year but despite that many either ignored or were unaware and continued to follow along. A senior, Joel Kniola states his view on the topic as he is aware of their drama from Tiktok: “Rather than making it your whole entire life, maybe you should just really capture what is happening than making it your personality. He further comments, “I feel like no matter what there is always a money incentive to it but I do feel like there is a difference of stuff that does not need to be discussed nor shown especially involving your own kids.” Attention and wealth are a huge drive for most content creators so where do we truly draw the line? Money can drive people to do things that do not align with their morals.
Ruby along with other clients began applying the advice to her personal life and later it was revealed that their approach was ultimately toxic. Despite the backlash, Ruby along with Jodi continued to create videos and ultimately led to their downfall on August 31, 2023, as they both were arrested on child abuse charges. NBC was one of the several news outlets to explore and cover the story discussing the dangers and how unexpecting it was especially how “perfect Mormon family” they portrayed themselves to be. For sophomore student Cedar Greene she concludes, “There is invasive and inappropriate details like first period and first time shaving that may seem educational but they are very personal “ and furthermore states, “If the kid says the do not want to be filmed then they should not that is where the line should be drawn” The same footage she used and posted onto her channel is now being used against her. The real question is why did it take this long for actions to be taken? Despite this unfortunate circumstance family vlogging is not going to discontinue as Joel mentions, “You can discourage exploitation of minor by holding people accountable while it is happening not waiting to later like the have the footage but always trying to hold people accountable as soon as possible.” At the end of the day the decision whether more legal action should be in place to protect children is a discussion are government has failed to assess and protect celebrity children, and any other kids with online attention.
Family vlogging is a current ongoing hot topic that has a lot of negative and positive aspects in regard to money, wealth, fame, and exploitation of children.
