Continuing the discussion around instagram influencers and ethics

[bawbles]

Continued from old thread

@CadyHeron
But isn't the question about who actually the money belongs to? Why do you assume that the parents are entitled to spend all of the money however they see fit and the children who are actually the ones featured in the images aren't entitled to any of it? This is another issue at the heart of the debate, once an influencer builds their whole social media presence and therefore marketability on their children then surely the children could quite rightly challenge their rights to any money earnt once they become adults?

I would've thought that buy using your children to sell a product and publishing that to tens of thousands of followers you were a) making it the followers business and b) using your children to make money, which in other forms of media would be monitored and seen as their earnings.

Non of what they publish every day is anybody's business they put it out there

Just because they publish photos of family life, doesn't mean it's automatically OK to demand to know whether they're going to buy new shoes for the kids, open an account or buy cake.
They show pictures of them all enjoying a day on the beach or whatever and sudden intrusive nosiness like "what do you spend your money on? I hope it's not cake and you're putting it all away for your children" is magically supposed to be acceptable and "but we should be able to know."
No. It's no-one else's business what they spend their money on.

I am a huge critic of MoD, absolutely - but, no, I don't think I have started into personal nastiness. I just point out the very obvious sales machine that drives her thread. I am trying to steer my teenage children through these same choppy waters so, yes, I am hugely invested in the marketing/sales techniques at play here.

Non of what they publish every day is anybody's business they put it out there

True, but people like yourself and on these threads obviously do choose to follow accounts like these and are interested in them.
If you truly think it's none of your business to be looking at other people's photos you can always click off and not look.

....... strayed, not started.

I am a huge critic of MoD, absolutely - but, no, I don't think I have started into personal nastiness

You being the one that would have been making interesting points but had to get little digs like "Saint Clemmie" in?
Kind of invalidates any point you'remaking and just comes across as snide.

@arumdo it feels like because that account is run by someone just like us we are supposed to not see that side of things. People wish to remain blind to the fact it's a very profitable sales machine, with behind the scenes planning and business meetings and deals. We're all supposed to just fall for it and say nothing or we are bitches or jealous. It's bizarre.
And no one is saying what they do with their money is anyone's business, but discussing the ethics of using your children to make money whilst in the current loophole of not having to face up to the fact those children are working and earning money in their own right.
I don't care how any of these accounts spend their money, but I'm appalled to see parents using their children as advertising tools without any protection for those children.

Not snide and doesn't invalidate valid points at all. It's the way the account is run.

*Duplicate post

It absolutely is acceptable to question what is done with money which is made off the backs of children. That’s one of the major ethical questions about the use of children in Instagram accounts, as well as privacy, security etc.

exactly, of course it's non of my business, I don't care what they do with their money. I was trying to question the concept.....use of non consenting children in sales for financial gain of others...

I was trying to be thought provoking...

I thought this was a place where we could debate the ethics of this new sales trend.

exactly, of course it's non of my business, I don't care what they do with their money

Can see the point you're trying to make, but you still did want to know whether she's going to spend it on cake or her kids.
Which is total nosiness whether it's dressed up as ethics concern or not.

No, I wasn't being snide - just commenting on the style and marketing techniques being employed on the Insta account. I show my dc how tagging, promoting and asking for recommendations generate business. It is important that my dc know that IGers are not their friends, they are salespeople doing whatever it takes to make the sale.

This is a really important point made by @arumdo teaching our children about how these accounts work. It's not dressed up as anything else and can only imagine the poster so frequently arguing this runs a monetised account and any critism or observation upset them and don't sit well. We've had offers which I've turned down, but my younger dc will say 'aww mum you should do it we'll get loads of free toys/days out, it will be wicked' and I've gone through why we feel their privacy is more important, but also how to come buy these freebies becomes more and more contrived and you have to try to get others to buy stuff and it's not very nice on many levels.
It's not just the children being monetised it's the children and teenagers growing up with this marketing being rammed down their throats.

*by...

This is a really important point made by @arumdo teaching our children about how these accounts work. It's not dressed up as anything else and can only imagine the poster so frequently arguing this runs a monetised account and any critism or observation upset them and don't sit well

I agree that children should be aware of how accounts can be monetised, I've never said different which is why I didn't disagree with that bit.
They should be aware that sometimes they're being sold to. Which is why if they're doing an ad, they should say ad on them.
I was just saying that it is bloody nosy to think you (general you) have a right to know whether they're spending their money on cake or their kids.
It's nobody's business but their own what they spend their money on.

Bah, bold fail, sorry.

I think everyone had agreed that no one is interested how people spend their money. It's definitely the ethics surrounding effectively working children that have no guidelines or rules or protection. I'd hope that within another few years they are offered the same as children working for agencies or on tv or magazines.
I've followed chloeandbeans for years and it took a long time to realise that their argument of 'it's only 10 minutes of the day' doesn't stand up. When children are continually exposed on IG and in vlogs, the familiarity breeds and you can see from the comments, people feel they know the children and their personalities, their favourite toys and comforters, their beds and bedrooms, it's very strange for children to grow up with so much exposure. And whilst they don't cross the line with potty shots and tantrums and private moments it boils down to the same thing. The dad was able to give up work so they could both homeschool. The children are their income. It's the same with the Meldrums and the OD's (although the OD's still have their toes in 'their real life jobs') ultimately a huge part of their lives is on camera and being filmed and photographed for parental, financial gain.

As an experienced parent and keen amateur photographer, I refuse to believe that each IG photo only takes a moment to take. These photos are very heavily staged, very heavily. I know how long it can take when dealing with young children (and Der teens) it's like trying to herd cats! If you're only working with one camera, and so just the one angle/aspect, it can take a very long time to get the right shot.

My DD did some child modelling years ago. Yes, she was very photogenic but just as importantly she was relaxed and amenable in front of the camera. And even then, they had to take a lot of photos and it took a long time to get good photos.

@ARumDo

I presume the post you're referring to in which MOD name checks various holiday companies is the latest one? She has stated they paid for the holiday themselves, her post recommends local shops and restaurants. She has answered the questions put to her re who she booked through etc. What is the problem with that?

@stilldazed querying how the Meldrums spend their money is thought provoking? The use of money earned by featuring children has been done to death on these threads so hardly thought provoking.

@Confusssed

Can you show some examples of what you deem to be heavily staged photo's (that aren't part of an ad or sponsored partnership)?

Surely not Sofia re-hashing stuff that has already been discussed to death so she can then accuse people of being fixated on one topic

We've moved on.