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Friday, September 27, 2024
Child Influencer Protection Bills Signed Into Law in California
www.hollywoodreporter.com: California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two bills into law in Los Angeles on Thursday that offer new financial protections to children who perform and appear in income-generating online content.
I didn’t know about this law until I saw this article, but I am very glad that it was passed. As a fan of many film series about teenage characters, I know all too well that many child actors are often taken advantage of either by their parents/legal guardians, or by the producers and directors. I remember reading about how the actors of 1968’s screen adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, who were minors at the time of filming, were coerced into filming nude scenes. Olivia Hussey, who played Juliet in the movie, developed an eating disorder and suffered mental anguish from the filming of the movie.
Being launched into fame at a young age is a difficult enough thing to process. Child actors shouldn’t have any additional hardships thrust upon them. Currently I am paying attention to the young cast of the Percy Jackson series on Disney plus, because I hope they don’t end up with alcoholism the way Daniel Radcliffe did while he filmed Harry Potter.
Any law that goes into place protecting children, especially child stars, is an important step in the process of ensuring the safety of minors who easily become victims to the system when they are left in the care of parents who don’t care or realize the dangers of putting their children in a public performance art so early in life. While I approve of and believe that laws like this are an important step, they are far from enough when the abuse and problems go so far beyond monetary discrepancies between adults and minors. Laws covering hours for children working in the entertainment industry, their education, and protections from internet predators should also be in effect immediately. There are so many unfortunate stories of children being subjected to predatory behavior within this industry, as there is no way to control who is watching or following when you are on a public forum such as the internet. When the dangers are not found in child predators, they can be seen in issues with loss of education or a sense of normalcy, as kids in these situations are often pulled out of school because of stalkers or unwanted attention stemming from their social media accounts. While steps like these are important, there is so much more that we can and should do to protect children in these situations instead of solely focusing on making sure they get a percentage of their profit.
In recent years with the influx family vloggers, youtubers and tik tokers and the use of their childrens' image for views and likes, I'm happy a bill like this is being passed, better late than never I guess. While the already existing legislation allows some protection in the way of making sure there will be compensation for the child when they are older I don't think this is enough. I feel as though I am constantly seeing family after family getting arrested or just cancelled for the horrible exploitation of their children. In some cases it goes far beyond just using them and their image for social media, but I think more needs to be done to keep them safe. Yes, making the regulation of their time on screen and compensation put aside harder, like this bill, will do some good, but this is just one place. People will always find their loopholes and find what they are doing worth it for some other reason. I'm happy we're finally making some steps in the right direction, but I think it's only a matter of time before parents find another way around it.
I think this is an absolutely fantastic idea. The social media and the entertainment industry as a whole has been preying on the innocence of children for years in manners that have continued to damage people as they grow into adulthood. So much information and even documentaries have come out recently about how child actors are treated and it's so unfortunate that they can be taken advantage of in such a manner. It's quite literally child labor and for parents to feel entitled to the money their child makes is so disappointing, more laws like this should be passed to protect the children involved in entertainment. Social media and film entirely, children need to be protected more than they are, and you might hope that the parents would advocate for their children in that manner, but when the parents are the ones exploiting them for money, they really have no one looking out for them.
I think this bill is a good step towards wiping child influencers off the internet. While I think protection of the child’s financials and health is necessary, I think a bill that bans children under the age of 16 to be making money off of the internet. Child influencers are exploited by their parents and talent agencies to do basically a form of child labor that benefits the parents. The children are also exposed to mass amounts of negative comments, harassers, stockers, and creeps with bad intentions. I also think children are too young to know the consequences of being online and are not able to consent to being the on the internet. This bill is a step in the right direction but I hope there’s more in the works to make it illegal.
It’s fantastic to see truly important laws like this one being passed. Like the article says, it is essentially an update of the Coogan law, but it’s incredibly important that laws change as the rest of the world does. The Coogan law is almost 100 years old now, and the world is not at all the same now as it was then. There’s some content on the internet involving influencer families that make me a little concerned for the children. I can’t claim to know enough about the topic to know what is and isn’t a problem, but I do wonder about stuff like this every time a see a video with a child performer. It’s great that SAG-AFTRA was supportive of the new law; I wonder how involved they can get with child performers. Of course they can’t join a union, but it would be cool if the union was still able to protect them somehow.
Child exploitation on social media is no joke, many parents are taking advantage of their children’s image and stability in order to make money off of them online and it’s honestly sad it took this long for a law to be put in place to protect them however I’m glad it finally happened(it’s surprising to me that movie child stars got laws at a point while child social media stars didn’t as I feel like it’s more likely for parents to utilize social media for exploitation). The entertainment industry has always benefited from child exploitation and the abuse of children so more needs to be done to ensure that the industry is a better place for children, the laws put in place are a starting point but more needs to be done. I feel like this isn’t enough as child exploitation doesn’t always stem from money, children get exploited in the industry for a wide array of reasons, some of which can’t be connected back to their monetary value. I think more regulations need to be put in place especially for the parents of child stars, to ensure that they don’t take advantage of their children, making sure child stars are safe and not preyed upon by adults
This new legislation is incredible and a huge step in the fight against child exploitation. It is blatantly obvious that the degree to which children are featured in social media based content online, and the nature of that content and the compensation for it, has created a breeding ground for egregious abuse, neglect, and exploitation. This is especially visible among so called 'YouTube family channels' and 'MomTokers,' who work their children to a degree that would be considered criminal with adult employees, let alone unpaid minors who have no way of escaping the abuse. These laws are a starting point to combatting that vicious cycle by at least providing a legal obligation to provide compensation and, in theory, guarantee it (though from existing case studies with child actors, we know that is not always true). These laws, however, are just a start, and don't address the most pressing issues in this scenario. The rampant and horrific neglect, mistreatment, overworking, parentification, and abuse of all kinds that is not only present, but encouraged within the child content sphere is a relatively new, but very urgent problem. Children are bled dry for content that is frequently intrusive, psychologically damaging, dangerous, and even sexual. Unlike with child actors, who typically have access to a large population of adults they work around who are able to raise alarms about abuse or neglect, child influencers are frequently shut in with their parents/bosses, who have the potential to get away with absolute horrors without being caught. We've seen some extreme case studies of this, but with the rise in popularity of these channels, it is only going to get worse. This legislation is definitely a start, but we need a lot more, and quickly, in order to protect our children.
I’m very glad the Coogan Law is being expanded for the digital age. California Assembly Bill 1880 and Senate Bill 764 protect children with online presences against being financially abused, similar to how the Coogan law did (or attempted to do) the same for children in film. The law mandated that 15% of a child performer’s earnings be saved in a protected trust that they can access upon turning eighteen. With these new laws, at least 30% of gross earnings must be in a trust with the same conditions. It also requires creators to maintain better records for the protection of children involved. I was able to skim through Bill 1880, a bipartisan effort with standard diction and legal jargon. I was not able to find Bill 764 online. Though this is focused on California, many states around the U.S. have essentially copied the Coogan law on a state legislature level.
I'm very supportive of this law. children should have access to the money they are making for their family, and should never be undercompensated or exploited for their work. It is truly disgusting to see so many kids online exploited and used for entertainment especially in “family” YouTube channels and Tik Tok content. It is crazy to think about the digital footprint some kids have, as young as their literal ultrasound to first day of preschool, or embarrassing moments of growing up that their families film and make money off of.young child stars on social media sadden me, especially since their parents raise them under the forced expectation to constantly perform for the world in their own home. This law should not be the last one when it comes to protecting kids from being exploited online. Social media has grown to control our lives. Children should be in school learning and growing and experiencing life freely, those memories should be theirs, not the worlds as well.
10 comments:
I didn’t know about this law until I saw this article, but I am very glad that it was passed. As a fan of many film series about teenage characters, I know all too well that many child actors are often taken advantage of either by their parents/legal guardians, or by the producers and directors. I remember reading about how the actors of 1968’s screen adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, who were minors at the time of filming, were coerced into filming nude scenes. Olivia Hussey, who played Juliet in the movie, developed an eating disorder and suffered mental anguish from the filming of the movie.
Being launched into fame at a young age is a difficult enough thing to process. Child actors shouldn’t have any additional hardships thrust upon them. Currently I am paying attention to the young cast of the Percy Jackson series on Disney plus, because I hope they don’t end up with alcoholism the way Daniel Radcliffe did while he filmed Harry Potter.
Any law that goes into place protecting children, especially child stars, is an important step in the process of ensuring the safety of minors who easily become victims to the system when they are left in the care of parents who don’t care or realize the dangers of putting their children in a public performance art so early in life. While I approve of and believe that laws like this are an important step, they are far from enough when the abuse and problems go so far beyond monetary discrepancies between adults and minors. Laws covering hours for children working in the entertainment industry, their education, and protections from internet predators should also be in effect immediately. There are so many unfortunate stories of children being subjected to predatory behavior within this industry, as there is no way to control who is watching or following when you are on a public forum such as the internet. When the dangers are not found in child predators, they can be seen in issues with loss of education or a sense of normalcy, as kids in these situations are often pulled out of school because of stalkers or unwanted attention stemming from their social media accounts. While steps like these are important, there is so much more that we can and should do to protect children in these situations instead of solely focusing on making sure they get a percentage of their profit.
In recent years with the influx family vloggers, youtubers and tik tokers and the use of their childrens' image for views and likes, I'm happy a bill like this is being passed, better late than never I guess. While the already existing legislation allows some protection in the way of making sure there will be compensation for the child when they are older I don't think this is enough. I feel as though I am constantly seeing family after family getting arrested or just cancelled for the horrible exploitation of their children. In some cases it goes far beyond just using them and their image for social media, but I think more needs to be done to keep them safe. Yes, making the regulation of their time on screen and compensation put aside harder, like this bill, will do some good, but this is just one place. People will always find their loopholes and find what they are doing worth it for some other reason. I'm happy we're finally making some steps in the right direction, but I think it's only a matter of time before parents find another way around it.
I think this is an absolutely fantastic idea. The social media and the entertainment industry as a whole has been preying on the innocence of children for years in manners that have continued to damage people as they grow into adulthood. So much information and even documentaries have come out recently about how child actors are treated and it's so unfortunate that they can be taken advantage of in such a manner. It's quite literally child labor and for parents to feel entitled to the money their child makes is so disappointing, more laws like this should be passed to protect the children involved in entertainment. Social media and film entirely, children need to be protected more than they are, and you might hope that the parents would advocate for their children in that manner, but when the parents are the ones exploiting them for money, they really have no one looking out for them.
I think this bill is a good step towards wiping child influencers off the internet. While I think protection of the child’s financials and health is necessary, I think a bill that bans children under the age of 16 to be making money off of the internet. Child influencers are exploited by their parents and talent agencies to do basically a form of child labor that benefits the parents. The children are also exposed to mass amounts of negative comments, harassers, stockers, and creeps with bad intentions. I also think children are too young to know the consequences of being online and are not able to consent to being the on the internet. This bill is a step in the right direction but I hope there’s more in the works to make it illegal.
It’s fantastic to see truly important laws like this one being passed. Like the article says, it is essentially an update of the Coogan law, but it’s incredibly important that laws change as the rest of the world does. The Coogan law is almost 100 years old now, and the world is not at all the same now as it was then. There’s some content on the internet involving influencer families that make me a little concerned for the children. I can’t claim to know enough about the topic to know what is and isn’t a problem, but I do wonder about stuff like this every time a see a video with a child performer. It’s great that SAG-AFTRA was supportive of the new law; I wonder how involved they can get with child performers. Of course they can’t join a union, but it would be cool if the union was still able to protect them somehow.
Child exploitation on social media is no joke, many parents are taking advantage of their children’s image and stability in order to make money off of them online and it’s honestly sad it took this long for a law to be put in place to protect them however I’m glad it finally happened(it’s surprising to me that movie child stars got laws at a point while child social media stars didn’t as I feel like it’s more likely for parents to utilize social media for exploitation). The entertainment industry has always benefited from child exploitation and the abuse of children so more needs to be done to ensure that the industry is a better place for children, the laws put in place are a starting point but more needs to be done. I feel like this isn’t enough as child exploitation doesn’t always stem from money, children get exploited in the industry for a wide array of reasons, some of which can’t be connected back to their monetary value. I think more regulations need to be put in place especially for the parents of child stars, to ensure that they don’t take advantage of their children, making sure child stars are safe and not preyed upon by adults
This new legislation is incredible and a huge step in the fight against child exploitation. It is blatantly obvious that the degree to which children are featured in social media based content online, and the nature of that content and the compensation for it, has created a breeding ground for egregious abuse, neglect, and exploitation. This is especially visible among so called 'YouTube family channels' and 'MomTokers,' who work their children to a degree that would be considered criminal with adult employees, let alone unpaid minors who have no way of escaping the abuse. These laws are a starting point to combatting that vicious cycle by at least providing a legal obligation to provide compensation and, in theory, guarantee it (though from existing case studies with child actors, we know that is not always true). These laws, however, are just a start, and don't address the most pressing issues in this scenario. The rampant and horrific neglect, mistreatment, overworking, parentification, and abuse of all kinds that is not only present, but encouraged within the child content sphere is a relatively new, but very urgent problem. Children are bled dry for content that is frequently intrusive, psychologically damaging, dangerous, and even sexual. Unlike with child actors, who typically have access to a large population of adults they work around who are able to raise alarms about abuse or neglect, child influencers are frequently shut in with their parents/bosses, who have the potential to get away with absolute horrors without being caught. We've seen some extreme case studies of this, but with the rise in popularity of these channels, it is only going to get worse. This legislation is definitely a start, but we need a lot more, and quickly, in order to protect our children.
I’m very glad the Coogan Law is being expanded for the digital age. California Assembly Bill 1880 and Senate Bill 764 protect children with online presences against being financially abused, similar to how the Coogan law did (or attempted to do) the same for children in film. The law mandated that 15% of a child performer’s earnings be saved in a protected trust that they can access upon turning eighteen. With these new laws, at least 30% of gross earnings must be in a trust with the same conditions. It also requires creators to maintain better records for the protection of children involved. I was able to skim through Bill 1880, a bipartisan effort with standard diction and legal jargon. I was not able to find Bill 764 online. Though this is focused on California, many states around the U.S. have essentially copied the Coogan law on a state legislature level.
I'm very supportive of this law. children should have access to the money they are making for their family, and should never be undercompensated or exploited for their work. It is truly disgusting to see so many kids online exploited and used for entertainment especially in “family” YouTube channels and Tik Tok content. It is crazy to think about the digital footprint some kids have, as young as their literal ultrasound to first day of preschool, or embarrassing moments of growing up that their families film and make money off of.young child stars on social media sadden me, especially since their parents raise them under the forced expectation to constantly perform for the world in their own home. This law should not be the last one when it comes to protecting kids from being exploited online. Social media has grown to control our lives. Children should be in school learning and growing and experiencing life freely, those memories should be theirs, not the worlds as well.
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