5 Reasons Why I'm Against Family Vlogging

*3-Minute Read*

Before I begin, I want to clarify that I am not referring to those who occasionally post a family event on YouTube. I'm not even referring to those who vlog here and there. Who I am talking to here are those parents who upload videos to YouTube every friggin day. Their children are exploited to the point that I could write their biographies by only watching their channel. That amount of publicity is my issue. 

Now, with that being said, here are the five issues I have with daily family vlogging:

1) There are no regulations in place.

Kid actors are protected by various labor laws. They may only work a certain amount of hours each day, are able to walk away from a contract, have a parent/guardian accompany them on set, and so on. Reality stars have far less protection but they, at least, are informed of the date/time filming will take place. Also, the worst of the worse moments will likely be forbidden from airing on television. Yes, YouTube has standards, too. But they're incredibly easy to break. Videos that don't fall in line with the site's policies have stayed up for weeks, months, even years before a concerned person reports it. But, even you families who aren't controversial, when does the camera time end in your home? Does your kid now realize that, at any moment, a camera can get sprung in his/her face? Do you interrupt a typical day in the life to do some activity just to gain viewers? Yeah, I know some of that has to be going on in some homes across the world.

2) Kids cannot consent.

I just mentioned that child actors can walk away from a contract. The reasoning behind that allowance is is that minors are not declared "competent" to sign a contract. So, if a child isn't considered to fully understand every term in an entertainment contract, then how can you expect your child to understand the gravity of starring in an online video each day? They're not even portraying characters; they're just trying to be themselves. A video can never truly be erased, and it cannot be unseen by viewers. And the viewers? Once your video is public, you've given predators, hackers, and bullies access to it. There's consequences from that, and children don't tend to think of problems that may arise in the future from something they're doing now. This leads me to my next point...

3) It's awkward and embarrassing.

Do you want classmates to be making fun of your son, because they saw him as a one-year-old getting his diaper changed? Or do you want an admissions officer of your daughter's dream college to see her as a second grader, throwing a fit because you all needed to leave the park? And how odd would it be for a hiring manager to watch a potential employee's rebellious streak in high school? It looks like it's not just the kids who aren't envisioning future consequences after all. But you're the adults; you're supposed to. If you put your viewers' wants and needs over your children's welfare, you'll probably end up in a one-star nursing home. 

4) You shouldn't be making money just for living.

Spending time with your family should not result in earning money. That bonding is irreplaceable and should be rewarding to do for free. And, here's the thing, how many people would watch family vloggers with no children? My guess is very few. So, in my opinion, you're exploiting your children and getting rewarded for it. And is that money being given to your children? Or even put in a savings account in their names? Me thinks that, at least sometimes, this isn't the case. The kids earn the cash; the parents pocket it. To those mommies and daddies, go get real jobs and provide for your kids. It shouldn't be the other way around. And, if you want your children to have the experience of earning their own dollar bills, there's this thing called an allowance. 

5) Who really cares?

We all need to remember to live our own lives and not get so enamored with those of strangers'. And then maybe, just maybe, video cameras will disappear in YouTubers' homes.

We're getting closer and closer to the day when the memoirs by these children come out, exposing the dark reality of being filmed 24/7. We will discover the truth soon.

- Liv