Child Influencers Are At Risk Financially and Emotionally — From Their Parents.

And only one state has stepped up to offer the most token protections.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio via Pexels

A few years ago, I was scrolling on Instagram when I came across something that truly skeeved me out: a child, four years old, posing and modeling like an adult, down to holding a Starbucks coffee cup.

The Terrifying Rise of the Child Influencer and the Parents Who Profit

I stumbled across it because I followed a fashion account that posted outfit inspiration. At the time, I believed that whoever ran the account picked accounts at random to showcase. I have since learned that, if you were a burgeoning fashion influencer, you could pay an unspecified amount of money to be featured on the page.

I clicked on the young girl’s profile and learned that she had around 200,000 followers. She had brand sponsorships. And her account was managed by her mother. Makes sense, because I struggle to think of how a four-year-old’s pudgy fingers would be able to type the requisite caption: “I just love trench coats and I’m obsessed with this one !!”