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Apr 25

Behind the Screen: Protecting the Rights of Children in Family Vlogging

Samantha Tonini

Edited by Brett Banks, Jia Lin, and Vedanth Ramabhadran


Family vlogging has quickly emerged as a widespread phenomenon, captivating viewers with glimpses into the family’s daily lives. Whether it's a video about getting the kids ready for their first day of school or a family trip to Disneyland, audiences love the ability to connect to these families. Viewers watch as the family and the kids grow up, causing them to feel almost a part of the family. However, the “behind the scenes” shows a far more complicated life for these families, regarding the ethics and legality of their line of work, particularly concerning their children's involvement in their videos. With the proliferation of family vloggers across multiple media platforms and the concerning conditions that family vlogging poses, it is increasingly crucial for laws to be passed to protect the children in these families.

The most exigent case involving family vloggers concerned Ruby Franke, the mom and manager of the YouTube channel 8 Passengers in 2023. The channel started in 2015 and reached its pinnacle in 2020, aggregating more than 2.6 million subscribers [1]. Based in Utah, 8 Passengers followed the Franke family, Ruby, her husband Kevin, and their six kids: Shari (20), Chad (19), Abby (16), Julie (15), Russell (12), and Eve (10) [2].  However, many fans became increasingly concerned with Ruby’s discipline tactics, including denying the children food and sending one of their children to a wilderness survival camp for troubled teens [3]. YouTube channels, such as 6 Prisoners, began to compile a plethora of evidence of abuse found in the vlogs, including when Ruby took away her son Chad’s bed for seven months and threatened to cut off the head of one of her daughter’s stuffed animals with a pair of scissors, causing the child profound emotional stress [4]. After Ruby and her husband’s divorce in 2022, 8 Passengers was shut down, but Ruby soon began a new channel focused on parenting advice called Moms of Truth with Jodi Hildebrandt, a therapist based in Orem, Utah [5]. 

Even though the abuse was no longer being uploaded, there was still an imperative need for justice to be reached. The truth about the living conditions of these children came to the forefront after the second youngest Franke child, Russell, knocked on a neighbor’s door asking for help [6]. The young boy had duct tape around his ankles and was clearly malnourished [7]. The authorities were called, and it was discovered that the two youngest children were often bound and held hostage without any food or water for extended periods of time [8]. Ruby Franke was charged with six accounts of aggravated child abuse, four of which she has pleaded guilty to. Her charges include:


COUNT 1: AGGRAVATED CHILD ABUSE, a second degree Felony, in that the defendant, intentionally or knowingly, inflicted upon a child (RF) serious physical injury or, having the care or custody of such child, caused or permitted another to inflict serious physical injury upon said child (and such serious physical injury involves physical torture) in violation of Section 76-5- 109.2, Utah Code Annotated, 1953,as amended. 


COUNT 3: AGGRAVATED CHILD ABUSE, a second degre Felony, in that the defendant, intentionally or knowingly, inflicted upon a child (RF) serious physical injury or, having the care or custody of such child, caused or permitted another to inflict serious physical injury upon said child (and such serious physical injury includes conduct toward a child that causes severe. emotional harm), in violation of Section 76-5-109.2, Utah Code Annotated, 1953, as amended.


COUNT 5: AGGRAVATED CHILD ABUSE, a second degree Felony, in that the defendant, intentionally or knowingly, inflicted upon a child (EF) serious physical injury or, having the care or custody of such child, caused or permitted another to inflict serious physical injury upon said child (and such serious physical injury includes conduct toward a child that causes severe emotional harm), in violation of Section 76-5-109.2, Utah Code Annotated, 1953, as amended.


COUNT 6: AGGRAVATED CHILD ABUSE, a second degree Felony, in that the defendant, intentionally or knowingly, inflicted upon a child (EF) serious physical injury or, having the care or custody of such child, caused or permitted another to inflict serious physical injury upon said child (and such serious physical injury includes any combination of two or more physical injuries inflicted by the same person, either at the same time or on different occasions), in violation of Section 76-5-109.2, Utah Code Annotated, 1953, as amended. [9]


While the charges all only deal with the experiences of the two youngest Franke children, specifically in the three months leading up to her and Hildebrandt’s arrests, abuse has been suspected long before this. All of the Franke children endured years of abuse that was recorded, uploaded, and monetized. The Ruby Franke case has highlighted the necessity for reform concerning the safety and laws revolving around children of family vloggers, many of whom are too young to consent to be in the videos and have been forced to endure the work conditions that have been thrust upon them. 

The growing concern and increase of cases involving family vloggers has caused several states and politicians to begin to take action to protect these children. Most notable has been Illinois’ amendment of their Child Labor Laws, which is the first law to be passed that protects the rights of the children of family vloggers. In the amendment, it states in Section 12.6


  1. A minor satisfying the criteria described in subsection (a) of Section 2.6 must be compensated by the vlogger. The vlogger must set aside gross earnings on the video content including the likeness, name, or photograph of the minor in a trust account to be preserved for the benefit of the minor upon reaching the age of majority, according to the following distribution:

  2. Where only one minor meets the content threshold described in Section 2.6, the percentage of total gross earnings on any video segment including the likeness, name, or photograph of the minor that is equal to or greater than half of the content percentage that include the minor as described in Section 2.6; or

  3. Where more than one minor meets the content threshold described in Section 2.6 and a video segment includes more than one of those minors, the percentage described in paragraph (i) for all minors in any segment must be equally divided between the minors, regardless of differences in percentage of content provided by the individual minors. [10]


While this amendment does help protect the children of these vlogger families, many people have argued that it does little to protect their right to consent and privacy. California Senator Steve Padilla has recently introduced The Child Content Creator Rights Act, which has similar complaints made against it as “the legislation would ensure influencers under 18 earn fair financial benefits from the use of their image,” but does little protect the other rights of these minors [11]. In Washington, a bill has been proposed that goes one step further to protect not only the financial rights of these children but also their right to privacy; however, this right can only be guaranteed once the child turns 18, when they can request the “permanent deletion of any video segment including the likeness, name, or photograph of the individual from any internet platform or network that provided compensation to the individual's parent or parents in exchange for that video content” [12]. This bill has not yet been passed and is currently in committee. Maryland has a similar bill currently in committee that requires vlogger children to be compensated for the videos they are featured in and lays out a process for them to have their content taken down once they turn 18 [13]. They also establish that minors must receive a work permit, typically required under the Fair Standards of Labor Act, unless the minor is employed by their parents like these family vlogger children [14]. 

Interestingly, the Fair Standards of Labor Act has specific exemptions regarding their Child Labor Laws that exempt family vloggers from following regulations that typically protect minors. Largely, this is because of the exemption from the Oppressive Child Labor laws given to children who are employed by their immediate family [15]. These laws are designed to protect minors from jobs that would interfere with their school, health, and well-being. It is this exception that the Maryland proposed bill begins to address with new requirements regarding work permits. However, this proposed bill still fails to address poor working conditions for minors. 

Furthermore,  Section 213 (C) (3) of the Fair Standards of Labor Act exempts any child working within the entertainment industry, including being an actor or performing, once again allowing an exception to family vloggers from laws regarding the working conditions and hours of minors [16]. So, while these new laws being passed and proposed in states such as Illinois, Maryland, and Washington are an excellent step to protect these children financially, there are still strides to be made in the other areas of employment. The lack of protections for the children within vlogging families makes it impossible to regulate the work conditions that they face. 

The increased awareness surrounding the potential risks for these children has given birth to several movements aiming to help protect children online, one of which is the Quit Clicking Children Foundation. According to their website, their mission is “centered around the idea that when influencers use their kids for the majority of their content, the kids are the ones generating interest and revenue for that account and deserve to be compensated as such” [17]. They go on to say that “these children also deserve the right to privacy, something that they have been cruelly denied once they are continuously featured on public social media accounts” [18]. Quit Clicking Children works to educate people about the dangers of the monetization of children online and push legislators to pass bills to protect them, including the Illinois law and Washington state bill. 

On February 20, 2024, Ruby Franke was sentenced to 4 - 30 years of prison. During her sentencing, she stated that “my charges are just,” and “they offer safety to my family, accountability to the public, and they did show mercy to me” [19]. Ruby expressed deep remorse for the pain she and Hildebrandt caused the Franke children. The 8 Passengers story highlights the potential dangers that often occur behind the screen, dangers that go beyond financial risks, which most of the new laws and bills proposed seem to focus on. While guaranteeing financial security for these children is important, legislation should also be passed to guarantee these children’s right to privacy, as the Quit Clicking Children Foundation advocates for, and for improved working conditions as family vloggers are exempt from laws that would otherwise guarantee this. It is sometimes difficult for us as viewers to look beyond the nice houses and fancy trips that these vlogger families have the means to afford and to remember that at the end of the day, this is their job, and these children are just that: children. Just because their childhood has been uploaded for millions of people to view for entertainment it is not less valuable or less worth protecting. As the spotlight continues to shine brighter on these vlogger families, legislators must work to protect the safety and rights of these children.

 

[1] A Timeline of Ruby Franke’s Rise and Fall: From Family Vlogger to Convicted Child Abuser, Peoplemag, https://people.com/ruby-franke-rise-fall-youtube-vlogger-charged-child-abuse-7969073 (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[2] A Timeline of Ruby Franke’s Rise and Fall: From Family Vlogger to Convicted Child Abuser, Peoplemag, https://people.com/ruby-franke-rise-fall-youtube-vlogger-charged-child-abuse-7969073 (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[3] A Timeline of Ruby Franke’s Rise and Fall: From Family Vlogger to Convicted Child Abuser, Peoplemag, https://people.com/ruby-franke-rise-fall-youtube-vlogger-charged-child-abuse-7969073 (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[4] A Timeline of Ruby Franke’s Rise and Fall: From Family Vlogger to Convicted Child Abuser, Peoplemag, https://people.com/ruby-franke-rise-fall-youtube-vlogger-charged-child-abuse-7969073 (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[5] A Timeline of Ruby Franke’s Rise and Fall: From Family Vlogger to Convicted Child Abuser, Peoplemag, https://people.com/ruby-franke-rise-fall-youtube-vlogger-charged-child-abuse-7969073 (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[6] Remy Tumin, Host of YouTube Parenting Channel Is Charged With Child Abuse, The New York Times, Sep. 1, 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/01/us/ruby-franke-child-abuse-arrest.html (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[7] Remy Tumin, Host of YouTube Parenting Channel Is Charged With Child Abuse, The New York Times, Sep. 1, 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/01/us/ruby-franke-child-abuse-arrest.html (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[8] Remy Tumin, Host of YouTube Parenting Channel Is Charged With Child Abuse, The New York Times, Sep. 1, 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/01/us/ruby-franke-child-abuse-arrest.html (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[11] Senator Padilla Introduces Child Content Creator Rights Act - Legislation Preventing Financial Exploitation of Child Influencers, California State Senator Steve Padilla (2023), https://sd18.senate.ca.gov/news/senator-padilla-introduces-child-content-creator-rights-act-legislation-preventing-financial (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[15] The Fair Labor Standards Act, https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/FairLaborStandAct.pdf (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[16] The Fair Labor Standards Act, https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/FairLaborStandAct.pdf (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[17] Resources, Quit Clicking Kids (Sep. 20, 2022), https://quitclickingkids.com/resources/ (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[18] Resources, Quit Clicking Kids (Sep. 20, 2022), https://quitclickingkids.com/resources/ (last visited Mar 1, 2024).

[19]Laura Studley & CNN, Ruby Franke, Popular Parent Blogger, Sentenced to Consecutive Prison Terms for 4 Counts of Aggravated Child Abuse, CNN (2024), https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/20/us/blogger-ruby-franke-sentenced-four-consecutive-prison-terms/index.html (last visited Mar 1, 2024).


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