Tue Feb 25 11:20:00 UTC 2025: **Utah Preteen Testifies to Exploitation in Family Vlog, Calls for Child Protection Legislation**

SALT LAKE CITY, UT – The 11-year-old daughter of convicted child abuser Ruby Franke testified before the Utah House Business, Labor and Commerce Committee, detailing her exploitation in her mother’s popular family vlog, “8 Passengers.” Her father, Kevin Franke, read a statement on her behalf, revealing the child’s feelings of betrayal and the lasting trauma inflicted by years of online exposure.

The statement revealed that the preteen initially believed her participation in the vlogs was positive but later realized the devastating impact on her childhood. She explicitly stated that her mother withdrew all the money earned from the videos in 2023, despite the child’s hard work and discomfort in front of the camera. “I feel like my mom used me for money,” she poignantly declared.

The child advocated for a new bill requiring online creators earning over $150,000 annually from child-focused content to place a portion into a trust fund for their children. She emphasized the lasting social and emotional consequences of her experiences, including difficulty forming friendships and persistent attention-seeking behavior.

Her 16-year-old sister echoed similar sentiments, describing the involuntary surrender of their privacy, lives, and childhoods for online consumption. Both sisters highlighted the lack of compensation and control over their images and stories, advocating for children’s rights to financial compensation and the ability to withdraw from online content at will.

Their father, Kevin Franke, also expressed deep regret for his role in the family vlogging enterprise, stating that sharing his children’s lives online was a mistake he deeply regrets. Ruby Franke and her business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, were both previously convicted of aggravated child abuse.

The testimony has reignited the debate surrounding the exploitation of children in online content and spurred calls for stricter regulations to protect minors from the potential harm of vlogging. The proposed legislation aims to ensure children’s financial security and give them control over their online presence.

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