Utah Passes Bill to Protect Child Actors Amidting Family Scandal

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed a new law providing enhanced protections for child actors and influencers, addressing growing concerns around child exploitation in the digital age. The legislation, known as HB 322, was advocated for by Shari Franke, the daughter of disgraced parenting blogger Ruby Franke, after her mother’s legal troubles underscored the need for regulatory reforms.

HB 322 introduces several measures aimed at safeguarding minors involved in online content creation. It mandates that parents set aside 15% of their children’s earnings from acting or social media activities into a trust fund, accessible once they reach adulthood. Additionally, the law allows these young individuals the right to request the removal of any content they participated in if they find it embarrassing or harmful when they turn 18.

“If children are supposedly consenting to being filmed, why would they fear wanting content removed once they reach adulthood?” Shari Franke said in a recent Instagram post. Her advocacy for the bill comes in the wake of her mother’s conviction for child abuse and the traumatic experiences her siblings endured.

According to Utah State Representative Doug Owens, who sponsored the bill, HB 322 aims to provide necessary protections not only for traditional child actors but also for those involved in social media. “It’s a bill that has a couple of different parts: one is it protects traditional child actors, like in the film industry or making commercials. It also includes protections for children in social media content,” Owens explained to Fox News Digital.

Shari Franke has expressed frustration over the opposition the bill faces from some old family bloggers and lobbyists in Utah. “If family vlogging is as good as ‘ethical’ family vloggers want you to think, they should not fear being mandated to pay their children,” she stated, emphasizing that these measures are designed to protect children’s welfare.

The catalyst for HB 322 can be traced back to the high-profile case involving Ruby Franke, who authored a popular family vlog “8 Passengers” where she shared intimate moments of her family life. Following her arrest and subsequent guilty plea for child abuse in late 2023, calls for controls over family content creation practices intensified.

Kevin Franke, Shari’s father and Ruby’s ex-husband, has also vocalized support for the legislation, stating, “Children cannot give informed consent to be filmed on social media, period.” Kevin emphasized his regret over allowing his children’s lives to be displayed publicly for profit and recognized the exploitation inherent in such practices.

The law has drawn comparisons to similar regulations adopted in states like Illinois, California, and Minnesota, which also seek to protect young creators by ensuring their financial security and allowing content removal upon reaching adulthood. The move has sparked a wider discussion about the ethical implications of vlogging and children’s rights in the content creation sphere.

As part of the bill, strict penalties have been outlined for non-compliance, ensuring that parents or guardians face consequences if they fail to adhere to the requirements of safeguarding their children’s earnings.

Shari Franke’s memoir, “The House of My Mother,” reveals her personal struggles growing up in a family overshadowed by vlogging pressures. It highlights her attempts to gain intervention from child services to protect herself and her siblings from their mother’s extreme parenting behaviors. These revelations resonate with many families facing similar dilemmas in the content creation industry.

In light of Ruby Franke’s situation, Utah’s new law may set a precedent for other states facing similar issues, prioritizing the safety and rights of children in an increasingly digital world. “I’m not saying YouTube is a bad thing. Sometimes it brings us together,” said Shari, reflecting on the potential of social media. “But kids deserve to be loved, not used by the ones that are supposed to love them the most.”