Last week, Utah passed legislation that put some protections into place for child influencers, making it the fourth state to do so. Family influencing is a big thing in Utah. There are so many TikTokers, YouTubers, and even a reality TV series based on the industry. Utah’s bill was passed as a result of the Ruby Franke case, in which a popular ‘mom-fluencer’ was arrested for horrifically abusing her two younger children. The Franke family began as a YouTube channel called 8 Passengers, which starred Ruby, her now ex-husband, Kevin, and their six children.
Following Ruby’s arrest and conviction, her two older children, Shari Franke, 21, and Chad Franke, 20, began speaking out about the abuse they’d suffered during 8 Passenger’s heyday. Shari wrote a book called The House of My Mother: A Daughter’s Quest for Freedom that came out earlier this year and both spoke out on the Hulu docuseries, Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke. In honor of Utah’s new legislation, Chad and Shari’s comments appeared on Good Morning America on Monday morning. (Their interviews were conducted in January and February.) They talked about the dark side of being child influencers and vowed to never subject their own children to anything as “unethical” as family vlogging.
Ruby Franke’s children are distancing themselves from her family vlogging — with no intention of following in her footsteps. On Monday, March 31, the disgraced former parenting YouTuber’s eldest son and daughter, Shari Franke and Chad Franke, spoke with Good Morning America about the nature of vlogging with children. Chad specifically said that he won’t subject his own family to cameras when the time comes.
“I mean, Ruby clearly would slap us, flick our lips, whatever. I think Jodi [Hildebrandt, the family’s therapist] brought out the worst in her, and that’s how it got to where it ended up,” Shari said, adding, “I do think that family vlogging and family content is unethical.”
Chad, 20, added that he sees a family in his future, but not vlogging. “I eventually want to have a family, and I’ve learned from my mom’s mistakes,” he said. “We’re shutting off social media, shutting off the cameras. I’m not going to be using any kid as an employee.”
GMA3’s Eva Pilgrim reported that the children are “focused on moving on without Ruby.”
As previously reported, Ruby and Hildebrandt, were arrested in 2023 after her 12-year-old son escaped from Hildebrandt’s home in Ivins, Utah and asked a neighbor to call the police. Authorities soon discovered that both the boy and Ruby’s 10-year-old daughter had been abused; she and Hildebrandt pleaded guilty to multiple counts of aggravated child abuse. In February 2024, they each received four separate prison sentences for 1 to 15 years, which will run consecutively.
Last week, a Utah judge signed off on Ruby and Kevin Franke’s divorce, giving Kevin — who shares six children with his ex-wife — full custody of their four children who are still minors.
As for the couple’s eldest children, Shari released her book, The House of My Mother: A Daughter’s Quest for Freedom, via Gallery Books on Jan. 7. The release details her experiences in the Franke house growing up — where her family launched the 8Passengers YouTube channel in 2015. The account eventually earned 2.5 million subscribers. The family’s story was also detailed in the Hulu three-part docuseries, Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke, which released in February.
Power to Shari and Chad for speaking out. It’s so important that people like them, who have been through the worst of that world, warn parents just how exploitative family influencing can be. We’re way beyond “Charlie bit my finger” territory. Those kids are constantly paraded on camera and expected to perform so that their parents can make money. It really is so unethical. They have no agency, and currently, there are no rules in place to keep them safe. Child influencers are the new child actors, and there needs to be regulations beyond just promising them some money and the opportunity to have their content removed when they turn 18. I hope we see more, stronger legislation put into place moving forward. Those kids deserve their childhood.
photos are YouTube screenshots via GMA and Inside Edition
I’ve stopped watching some YouTubers once the content creators decided to start a family and have their kids’ faces online since the day they were born. So now the kids are part of what they’re trying to sell(?), entertain(?) to us with. I know a lot of their fans love watching the evolution and growth of the creators but it shouldn’t come at the cost of their kids lives especially when they couldn’t even say no since they were babies.
There was a family I used to watch on YouTube. They had 4 kids when I started watching but the kept growing with each one saying it was their last. They have 8 now. They are very Christian. I’m an atheist so there was always a lot i disagreed with but didn’t necessarily find harmful. Then they pulled a “prank” on their oldest daughter. They made believe they couldn’t find the youngest child. They claimed that the oldest daughter “thinks he’s hers” instead of saying she is raising the child. The oldest was about ten at the time. The girl was so distraught. She really believed the child had been stolen and it was her failure. They got so much backlash that they removed the video within two days and issued an apology. It was so gross. I watch them again.
Did you mean (last sentence) that you NEVER watched them again?
Can you say who it is?
Having watched documentary about this, I am surprised and disappointed that Kevin got full custody. While he was clearly under the thrall of Ruby, he did nothing to stop any of the abuse while he was still living in the house – as matter of fact, he defended it. He also completely abrogated his responsibilities to all of his minor children, including Chad who was kicked out of the house when he was 17, because Ruby told him to not have any contact with any of his children and then did not push back at all when he had no contact with Ruby, even to ask about the children, for a year. I hope there are some court appointed advocates for the children in his care and that counseling was mandated
Also, making parents scrub the videos of minors when those kids turn 18 does NOT help. Those children are still subjected to public scrutiny while they are minors and scrubbing the videos doesn’t make it impossible to find them because nothing is ever really fully erased from the web
I found that surprising, as well; I thought he was a crap father. Then again, it is Utah.
He really should not be in charge of them at all. He didn’t even file for divorce until it became clear Ruby was going away for a long time. And being completely non contact with all of his kids for year? Unforgivable.
I guess the flip side is, where would the kids go? Shari had custody of them for a bit when it first happened, that’s not fair to put on her, and she seems like she would be vocal if she was against her dad having custody. Ruby has two (I think?) sisters who are also family vloggers, I don’t know if they still are once all the details were known. When it first happened they were apparently posting about how they didn’t know and you can’t judge them without being in their situation (this is reporting, I have never watched a second of any of them).
Those poor, poor kids.
Social media is a cancer on society. full stop.
100%
Using minor children as entertainment seems to be an earning opportunity for these mindless breeders. The brainwashing techniques of these misogynistic cults are really what the problem with these people is at its root. Mindlessly breeding, and of course, keeping women in their place, isn’t that the ethos of our current administration? All in service to control and greed. This is what passes for entertainment?
Children used on ad revenue supported content should automatically be considered child actors and the rules about money and time working should be enforced. That isn’t a solution but at least they can get some benefits to pay for the therapist they will inevitably need when they become adults.
Removing the content at 18 does nothing about the mental distress being raised in a set with no delineation between Home and set. It’s the rare child star that comes out normal. Having you life revolve around a camera and performing mess a lot of kids. You can’t erase that 18. We have seen from Lindsey and Britney and Justin that child acting especially when the children are the main earners is basically abuse with lifelong negative effects. And at least child actors can go home after work. How do you feel comfortable when your kitchen and bedroom also double as your set. This might be an extreme case but outside of money I can’t see one benefit to child influencers
If I ever have a kid, I will not post a single picture of them on social media. & i would tell my family & friends the same. When you think about it, it’s unethical to create an online presence for a child.
First and foremost, content can be used for dark nefarious purposes. With AI now, it’s extremely dark and gross what people might do with a simple picture.
It can also be used against them in the future if it’s embarrassing.
It’s dangerous, people can easily use AI to find your address & know your habits through social media.
It’s just not right to put a child’s life on social media. Idc if grandma wants to see pictures on facebook, nope. Family can ask for pictures via text if they truly care that much.