Shari Franke, the oldest daughter of convicted child abuser and “mommy vlogger” Ruby Franke, spoke out about being a “victim of family vlogging” and the “dangers” of parents who monetize their children on social media.
She spoke to lawmakers on Utah’s Business and Labor Interim Committee in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, advocating for more protections for child influencers and describing what went on behind the camera as a child influencer herself.
“My mother, Ruby Franke, is the prominent family vlogger arrested last year for child abuse. I don’t come today as the daughter of a felon, nor a victim of an abnormally abusive mother,” she said in her opening remarks, which she shared on Instagram.
“I come today as a victim of family vlogging. My goal today is not to present any idea of a solution to this problem, but to shed light on the ethical and monetary issues that come from being a child influencer.”
Ruby Franke was arrested in August of last year, after her 12-year-old son escaped through the window of business partner Jodi Hildebrandt’s house and sought help from a neighbour, begging for food and water. When emergency responders found him, he was injured, starved and had duct tape on his wrists and ankles covering up wounds.
Franke’s 10-year-old daughter was also found in a similar condition when police searched the home.
In February, Franke was handed four one-to-15-year-long prison sentences by a Utah district court. Hildebrandt received the exact same sentence.
On Wednesday, Shari Franke spoke from personal experience to share the negative impact family vlogging has had on her life. She began appearing in her mother’s videos, alongside her five other siblings, in 2015.
“It is more than just filming your family life and putting it online,” she said. “It is a full-time job with employees, business credit cards, managers and marketing strategies.”
She noted that family vlogging is different from a normal, family-run business, as “all the children are employees,” and almost always the “stars” of their parents’ social media content.
“There is no such thing as a moral or ethical family vlogger,” she said, adding that while she was often paid for her work, the money was usually in the form of a bribe.
“…Going on vacation was expected to be payment enough because most kids don’t get to go on regular and expensive trips,” she continued, adding that “the child’s labour is actually what paid for the vacation or trip.”
She then went on to share some of her most traumatic experiences as a child influencer.
“Some of our most popular videos were when my eyebrow was accidentally waxed off, and the whole world saw a crying teenager who just wanted to mourn in private,” she said.
“Or the time I was violently ill, and got the leading role in the video for that day. My friends became scarce, because dates would be filmed and none of my friends wanted to be on camera.”
She added, “If I could go back and do it all again, I’d rather have an empty bank account now and not have my childhood plastered all over the internet. No amount of money I received has made what I’ve experienced worth it.”
Only two U.S. states have laws around financial protections for teens and children who are featured on social media. Last year, Illinois enacted legislation that “creates a private right of action for child influencers against their parents that featured them in videos and did not properly compensate them,” according to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s website.
More recently, California Gov. Gavin Newsom passed legislation that mandates parents and guardians set aside in trust accounts a percentage of earnings earned by minors who are “featured in monetized online content.”
Shari Franke said Wednesday that her mother’s crimes aside, what she experienced as a child influencer is “not unique.”
“Family vlogging ruined my innocence long before Ruby committed a crime. I promise you that my experiences are not unique, and are happening to child influencers all over Utah and the country. Let’s tackle this issue before it becomes a bigger crisis than it already is.”
She also announced her upcoming memoir, that promises to “cover the painful journey and experiences of growing up under intense public scrutiny.”
The House of My Mother hits shelves in January.