Resilient Jenkins: The Dark Side of Family Vlogging
Once upon a time, our childhood memories were captured on disposable cameras, only to later be developed and placed meticulously into a family photo album. These albums would be shared among those closest to us—friends and other family members. Now, for over a decade, we have seen the rise of family vlogging on platforms such as YouTube and TikTok. But why?
After completing the HBO Max documentary An Update on Our Family: The Myka and James Stauffer Story—which follows the couple who adopted a child from China only to later rehome him—I couldn’t help but think, If family vlogging poses so many dangers, why is it still so profitable?
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Myka Stauffer began her YouTube channel as a single mom living with her daughter before meeting her husband, James, on OKCupid. The couple then went on to have their first child together, followed by two additional children before making the decision to adopt. During this time, Myka and James were earning millions from their YouTube channel, where they shared daily content and updates about their children—never blurring their faces—and their most intimate moments, all online for the world to see.
As their subscribers grew, so did their brand partnerships, RPM, and ad revenue. With this success, Myka conjured up the idea of adoption. To date, videos about adoption have proven to be among the top 50 most viewed types of content on YouTube. With this in mind, Myka shared with her YouTube community that she and her husband would be welcoming a young boy, whom they named Huxley, into their family. Needless to say, their audience was tuned in, and their subscriber count grew by the thousands over a two-year period—leading to more partnerships and more money.
A playlist was even created to give viewers an inside look into their journey, from starting the adoption process to bringing Huxley home. But things took a dark turn once viewers began to notice that content featuring Huxley was mysteriously disappearing—along with comments from viewers asking the Stauffers about his whereabouts.
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Finally, after months of ignoring their inquiries, the couple finally spoke out, and it was one tweet that started a chain reaction of canceling the Stauffers—Huxley was rehomed due to having autism. The takedown happened swiftly, with brands being tweeted about this and forced to end their ties with Myka, to the couple eventually having to relocate with their family due to the intense amount of death threats they were receiving. Since 2021, the couple has remained incognito and has not returned to the video-sharing platform.
Fast forward to today, we see The Resilient Jenkins on TikTok, a family of seven residing in a one-bedroom apartment—where Mama Jenkins, aka Stephanie, and her husband share the one bedroom, and the children… well, they occupy the living and dining areas that are often unkempt. Stephanie shares that she has been trying to go viral for months, hoping to help change her family’s financial situation since her husband is unemployed and, due to the back child support he owes, refuses to get a job. Well, their viral moment came, and while they saw an onslaught of supporters, it was not without criticism and the online aunties making their way to dissect the family’s living conditions.
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"It caused me a lot of pain because I essentially had to abandon my childhood feelings and desires, becoming like a parentalized child, which is something some of you can probably relate to in your own way,”
CPS was contacted, and now, as of February 23, 2025, the family is facing eviction from their apartment. When Stephanie and her husband met, she had two kids of her own, and he had two kids as well. Together, they have two children. However, her husband’s first son does not reside with them—his mom is the one who is owed the back child support payments. Family vlogging is slowly becoming a widespread concern as more and more moms are putting their children in front of the camera in an attempt to exploit them for views and money, but who do we blame?
Do we solely blame the parents, the brands sponsoring them, or the platforms providing them a space to share this type of content despite the consequences? "Blogger kid" is the term now used to describe children who have been coerced to participate in family-style vlogging content to earn revenue for their family. This is different from child stars in that there are child labor laws that support these children and laws put in place that require that the income they earn is paid to them and not to their family. But while this does not stop parents from accessing the funds, their work is considered professional, and their intimate moments are not exposed to the world in the name of content.
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While there isn’t a specific medical term for adults who consume content centered around children, such as family vlogs, this behavior can be examined from psychological and sociological perspectives. For many, watching family-oriented content is normal and stems from interests in parenting, child development, or wholesome entertainment.
However, excessive interest in children’s content without a clear reason—especially when it goes beyond casual consumption (i.e., sending money, purchasing gifts and sending them to the children, cyberbullying)—could be associated with parasocial relationships, nostalgia, or even deeper psychological motivations. If someone finds themselves overly fixated on such content in a way that disrupts daily life or feels concerning, it may be helpful to reflect on the underlying reasons or consult a professional for insight.
While watching the documentary and following The Resilient Jenkins, I couldn’t help but notice the overwhelming number of women who are obsessing and overly in tune with these families—so much so that they send money and gifts or flood the comments with things like, “Waiting for an update,” which I believe is deeply concerning behavior. Additionally, there are brands that partner with the moms of these types of content who are also looking to exploit children for marketing purposes.
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If a brand can send your child an outfit or ask you to use a specific laundry detergent and talk about it, they are absolving themselves of the responsibility of ensuring that both the mom and the child are adequately compensated for the brand’s promotion. If the child is mentioned or used in any promotional content, they can be subject to child labor laws and are entitled to earn their own revenue.
But we’re seeing that not only is this type of content continuing to rise, but so is the viewership and the brand deals associated with it, which makes everyone involved responsible to a degree for the exploitation of a minor. All in all, I think we’re doomed as a society if we think this is normal and continue to support this type of content, let alone fund it.
by Venus Sanders
