Thread by @g0thgoblin

Did you find this video unsettling and can't place why? Time for a less fun Ms. Frizzle lesson:
How mom-run “girl influencer” accounts knowingly exploit, commodify, and cater content of their children to pedophiles 🧵

https://twitter.com/thefigen_/status/1874509318848229660

"hm my videos always get more views when bath time is included. instead of thinking critically about this i will make sure to include it in detail in every video"

The NYT did an investigation on girl influencers last year, and i’ll be pulling quotes from that report.

Most of these are started with completely innocent intentions: an effort to jump-start a modeling career, sharing dance, gymnastics or cheer videos with family and friends.

But it's important to remember that the second you post a photo online publicly, you are creating the base of your child's digital footprint.

Suggestive posts are more likely to receive interactions. On average, as the accounts gather more followers, they draw a higher proportion of males, according to analysis of data from analytics firms. More interaction = more brand deals = more money.

This incentive, paired with the fact that account owners who report explicit images or potential predators to Instagram are typically met with silence or indifference, and those who block many abusers have seen their own accounts’ ability to use certain features limited, results in parents slowly exploiting their children in more and more extreme ways

Mom: “She’s written herself off and decided that the only way she’s going to have a future is to make a mint on OnlyFans” “She has way more than that to offer.”

Same Mom: "But she's been doing this so long now, her numbers are so big. What do we do? Just stop it and walk away?"
Yes. Literally yes. You're worried a childhood spent modelling bikinis for adult men online scarred her, and you'd go back in time and never do this if you could.…… why the fuck is that even a question.

The harassment has bled into my daughter's real life, but “stopping would be giving in to the bullies” (pedophiles)

I cannot comprehend getting extremely sexual comments about my child and not only ignoring but leaning into it.

When you make your first few viral posts, it makes sense to make more of that type of content. Videos of children bathing (even when nudity is only implied, like with this video), eating, or wearing swim/dancewear get more saves for a reason, and there's no way these parents can't connect the dots especially when paired with these comments.

Obviously, there are creeps everywhere and there are a lot of things you cannot control when it comes to protecting children. But you CAN control the content you post of your own children on social media. These men have goddamned databases of popular girls

Remember when your mom showed your new girl/boyfriend your baby photos and you wanted to die of embarrassment? Imagine all of those online, as well as videos of you bathing broadcasted to 100,000+ followers.

In short: if you're going to show your kids online (don't), never ever ever show them bathing, changing, eating, in swimsuits or dancewear (leotards, 2 pieces etc). Videos of little girls eating corndogs or licking ice cream get way more engagement and are saved by adult men for a reason.

You might think I'm the friend who's too woke, and maybe I'm biased because I experienced CSA, but I can't imagine any parent is naive enough to not figure out what audience they've been pandering to.