I have been watching YouTubers and digital comedy duo, Kian Lawly and Jc Caylen, for as long as they have posted.
Most recently, Lawley has posted videos about his newborn son. My issue comes about when his fiancée, Ayla Woodruff, frequently posted updates about the baby.
Together, the couple has about a few million followers, so I understand they want to post content. However, over the past few weeks, Woodruff posted a video on her TikTok of her baby boy “picking out” his outfit. In the video, she included the full clip of her baby undressing himself.
You can imagine the immense discomfort that washed over me as this baby’s half-naked body was posted on the Internet for anyone to see. The number of comments compared to the amount of saves was even more disturbing.
I thought about how long I had been watching Kian and Jc, and surely the experience and knowledge they have obtained about the Internet from the early 2010s could not make them ignorant about the dangerous possibilities of posting even a picture of a child online.
It reminded me of this other very popular TikToker, by the name of Maia Knight. She became famous because of her unique story of being a single mother to twin girls. She posted their every morning routine and every milestone that her children experienced.
Until they got to around toddler age, Knight randomly started posting her children, but covered their faces. Ultimately, comments flooded with confusion and questions. No one could figure out why there was sudden protection over children, as the Internet had watched the children grow.
Furthermore, there was no confirmation as to why Knight chose to cover her twins’ faces for any reason associated with child endangerment, but there was evidence that her baby’s father went through a court battle in reference to their children.
Maia made a video, explaining that her baby’s father did not take her to court and force her to take down the videos instead, she protested that it was because of a personal gradual decision she had been planning on making.
It just reminded me of the disgusting nature of the Internet. As adult creators, we know what we sign up for and post with or without intention, trusting the internet. But to simply ignore the very possible opportunity of your child’s safety and image being compromised for the sake of content is wild.
I won’t even post my niece or nephew on my close friend’s story, having known everyone on there, because I acknowledge just how dangerous the Internet is.
Kids are not your content. Kids, if ever posted, should be managed safely by educated adults. Even when you put something out there on a permanent algorithm like the Internet, you sign an invisible binding contract to your digital footprint.
The dangers of AI have also raised a paranoia in me that I cannot shake, especially for internet personalities like Knight and Lawley. It sickens me to even imagine where their babies’ faces have ended up due to their ignorance.
Blair Bernard is a 21-year-old theater performance major from Lafayette, La.
