Child and family influencers are some of the hottest channels on YouTube. But what are the risks of living your childhood on camera? We argue, child influencing is child labor, and with this comes a myriad of unethical conditions and potential childhood trauma. Tune in to explore the mechanisms that drive this industry, and how platforms benefit from this damaging cycle. 

Written, Edited, and Produced by: Adele Williams, Anona Joshi, Diego Valdez

Art by Angelina Rappa

Special thank you to Brooke Aaron Duffy, Associate Professor, Department of Communication, Cornell University for speaking with us. Additional thank you to the Investigative Biology Department at Cornell University for our recording equipment.

Sources:

Masterson, Marina. “When Play Becomes Work: Child Labor Laws in the Era of ‘Kidfluencers.’” SSRN, 14 Aug. 2021, papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3650376.  

McKen, Jordy. “10 Family YouTuber Scandals: Articles on Watchmojo.Com.” WatchMojo, WacthMojo, 21 Sept. 2023, www.watchmojo.com/articles/10-family-youtuber-scandals/ryan-s-world.  

Muppalla, S. K., Vuppalapati, S., Reddy Pulliahgaru, A., & Sreenivasulu, H. (2023). Effects of Excessive Screen Time on Child Development: An Updated Review and Strategies for Management. Cureus, 15(6), e40608. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.40608

Riggio, Amanda G. “The Small-er Screen: YouTube Vlogging and the Unequipped Child Entertainment Labor Laws.” Seattle University Law Review, vol. 44, no. 2, Winter 2021, pp. 493-530. HeinOnline, https://heinonline.org/HOL/P?h=hein.journals/sealr44&i=497.

Vogels, Emily A. “Teens, Social Media and Technology 2022.” Pew Research Center, Pew Research Center, 10 Aug. 2022, www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/08/10/teens-social-media-and-technology-2022/.  

Music:

“Darren Curtis – It’s In The Fog” is under a Creative Commons license (CC BY 3.0). Darrencurtismusic. Music promoted by BreakingCopyright: https://bit.ly/b-in-the-fog 

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