Would you allow your DS (10) to post YouTube videos?

[GingerLeaves]

DS wants to upload some videos, of him singing/dancing, etc.

I'm a bit on the fence about it...

If I control his channel/help him with everything, would it be okay?

DS will have his channel promoted by his agency, it's more fun for him to upload them to a channel, than just to his portfolio, so there is a reason it would be beneficial.

also LOTS of boring stop motion animations

God no. I pity this generation and the complete lack of privacy.

mistigri - what you say is logical and makes sense - I was really responding to the OP's concerns...

However, I do have concerns regarding the amount of information children / teenagers put online without ever thinking through possible future impact, unless there is a direct tangible benefit (e.g. cash) from putting video / other material online, then I feel it is perhaps worth thinking twice before putting personal information out into the public domain... and losing control of it...

Outside commercial benefit, the other strong reasons for putting information online (sharing with friends & family etc.) can generally be done in a locked down environment... In reality very very few children make significant commercial gain online, so probably there is little reason for sharing online... I think that generally there can be some strong reasons for not sharing as a child, and few for sharing...

to put this in context:

• I am refering to videos / materials which are personally revealing - some of the suggestions above with no face / personal information showing are of course little issue
• I write this in the context of running a business which in part encourages our clients to use online social media...

Mistigri

but you've got to go out of your way to use a downloader site and then re-upload it all of which takes time and effort. Why would anyone go to even a small amount of trouble to do this?

Ding ding ding!

The million dollar question. I guess if we knew why, or better yet if people didn't, there wouldn't be trolls on the internet!

If your child is being bullied by kids who are prepared to go to these lengths, then frankly YouTube is the least of your worries.

No. It will be the bane of your child's life if it reaches YouTube.

Like I said if done professionally it could be a great asset, however advising someone to not encourage their child to post videos of themselves on YouTube isn't scaremongering. It's not telling them not to go outside, or to pursue their interests. It's acknowledging how cruel the internet can be and what people are like online. It's a tough world to face. I guess we'll agree to disagree.

Don't. You are exposing him to the pain and ridicule of the masses and the attention of those who like to casually insult people never mind those more dangerous. It's your job to protect him. Would you let him perform unsupervised in a busy town centre on a Saturday night? The feedback and reactions may be similar.