--:-- [Theme music fades out]
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Welcome to The Journal. I'm Ryan Knutson.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And I'm Jessica Mendoza.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Today, we're talking about a corner of social media that's become really popular - moms in Utah who share their families' day-to-day lives.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: That's right. And one of the most popular of these influencers is a woman named Ruby Franke. Her family's YouTube channel, Eight Passengers, had over 2.5 million subscribers and over a billion views.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: But Ruby Franke's life unraveled after one of her sons casually mentioned that he'd been sleeping on a beanbag chair for seven months in the basement as punishment for being defiant.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Viewers grew alarmed, and then they started picking up on other instances of punishment that they thought was cruel and unusual to the kids.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Child Protective Services were called on the Frankie family, and in 2022, the couple separated. Ruby took the youngest kids and moved in with a therapist, and they started building a new business together.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: But things got even worse in 2023 when one of Ruby Franke's sons escaped a house that she was living in with her new business partner and showed up on the doorstep of a neighbor.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: He was emaciated, malnourished. He had duct tape around his ankles and his wrists. And he was asking if she could take him to the police station.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: Police went to the house and found a second child. They arrested Ruby Franke and her partner and opened an investigation.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Police investigated Ruby Franke and her new business partner, and they found that they were really abusing the two youngest kids who were living at this house.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: They were depriving them of food. They were making them work in the hot sun without shoes. They were beating them.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Prosecutors said the two women appeared to believe that the abuse was necessary to teach the children how to properly repent for imagined sins and to cast the evil spirits out of their bodies.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: Ruby Franke pleaded guilty to four counts of child abuse and was sentenced to up to 30 years in prison.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: But her daughter, Sherry, wanted to see more protections for other children like her. And she took that fight to the state capitol.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: Sherry published a memoir last year called The House of My Mother. In it, she describes how her mother bribed and coerced her into embarrassing moments.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: For me, every video shoot remained a special kind of torture. I can never get used to it or relax.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: It was like one of those recurring nightmares where you're suddenly naked on a stage with a sea of eyes staring back at you, mocking.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Sherry talks about the pressure she felt to be a good girl and do what her mom said.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And she talks about the constant surveillance of the cameras, the disgusting online comments, and the anxiety and depression that came with it.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Sherry's memoir is a powerful indictment of the influencer culture that her mother helped create.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And it's led to a new law in Utah that requires parents to put money away in a trust for their kids if they make more than $150,000 a year off social media.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: And it also gives kids the right to take down embarrassing videos when they turn 18.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: This is a big step in protecting the kids who are being exploited by their parents for the sake of social media fame.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: And it's not just Utah. Other states are starting to follow suit.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: California, Illinois, and Minnesota have all passed laws to give more rights to children who appear online.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: And it's not just about the kids. It's about the parents who are exploiting them for their own gain.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And it's about the social media companies that are profiting from this exploitation.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: We'll be following this story and seeing how it plays out in the coming months.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: Thanks for listening to The Journal.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: If you like our show, follow us on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: We're out every weekday afternoon.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Thanks for listening.
--:-- [Theme music fades in]
--:-- Zusha Elinson: I'm Zusha Elinson, and I'm here to talk to you about the Ruby Franke scandal and her daughter's efforts to keep it from happening again.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Zusha, thanks for joining us.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: Thanks for having me.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: So, can you tell us a little bit about the Ruby Franke scandal?
--:-- Zusha Elinson: Sure. Ruby Franke was a popular Utah influencer who had a YouTube channel called Eight Passengers with her husband and six children.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And it was a huge success. They had over 2.5 million subscribers and over a billion views.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: But things started to unravel when one of her sons casually mentioned that he'd been sleeping on a beanbag chair for seven months in the basement as punishment for being defiant.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Viewers grew alarmed, and then they started picking up on other instances of punishment that they thought was cruel and unusual to the kids.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: Child Protective Services were called on the Frankie family, and in 2022, the couple separated. Ruby took the youngest kids and moved in with a therapist, and they started building a new business together.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: But things got even worse in 2023 when one of Ruby Franke's sons escaped a house that she was living in with her new business partner and showed up on the doorstep of a neighbor.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: He was emaciated, malnourished. He had duct tape around his ankles and his wrists. And he was asking if she could take him to the police station.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Police went to the house and found a second child. They arrested Ruby Franke and her partner and opened an investigation.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: Police investigated Ruby Franke and her new business partner, and they found that they were really abusing the two youngest kids who were living at this house.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: They were depriving them of food. They were making them work in the hot sun without shoes. They were beating them.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: Prosecutors said the two women appeared to believe that the abuse was necessary to teach the children how to properly repent for imagined sins and to cast the evil spirits out of their bodies.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Ruby Franke pleaded guilty to four counts of child abuse and was sentenced to up to 30 years in prison.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: But her daughter, Sherry, wanted to see more protections for other children like her. And she took that fight to the state capitol.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: Sherry published a memoir last year called The House of My Mother. In it, she describes how her mother bribed and coerced her into embarrassing moments.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: For me, every video shoot remained a special kind of torture. I can never get used to it or relax.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: It was like one of those recurring nightmares where you're suddenly naked on a stage with a sea of eyes staring back at you, mocking.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: Sherry talks about the pressure she felt to be a good girl and do what her mom said.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And she talks about the constant surveillance of the cameras, the disgusting online comments, and the anxiety and depression that came with it.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Sherry's memoir is a powerful indictment of the influencer culture that her mother helped create.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: And it's led to a new law in Utah that requires parents to put money away in a trust for their kids if they make more than $150,000 a year off social media.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And it also gives kids the right to take down embarrassing videos when they turn 18.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: This is a big step in protecting the kids who are being exploited by their parents for the sake of social media fame.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: And it's not just Utah. Other states are starting to follow suit.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: California, Illinois, and Minnesota have all passed laws to give more rights to children who appear online.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: And it's not just about the kids. It's about the parents who are exploiting them for their own gain.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And it's about the social media companies that are profiting from this exploitation.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: We'll be following this story and seeing how it plays out in the coming months.
--:-- Zusha Elinson: Thanks for listening to The Journal.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: If you like our show, follow us on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: We're out every weekday afternoon.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Thanks for listening.
--:-- [Theme music fades in]
--:-- Doug Owens: I'm State Representative Doug Owens, and I proposed a bill last fall to protect the kids who are being exploited by their parents for the sake of social media fame.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Thanks for joining us, Representative Owens.
--:-- Doug Owens: Thanks for having me.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: So, can you tell us a little bit about your bill?
--:-- Doug Owens: Sure. The bill requires parents to put money away in a trust for their kids if they make more than $150,000 a year off social media.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And it also gives kids the right to take down embarrassing videos when they turn 18.
--:-- Doug Owens: That's right. And it's a big step in protecting the kids who are being exploited by their parents for the sake of social media fame.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: And it's not just Utah. Other states are starting to follow suit.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: California, Illinois, and Minnesota have all passed laws to give more rights to children who appear online.
--:-- Doug Owens: And it's not just about the kids. It's about the parents who are exploiting them for their own gain.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: And it's about the social media companies that are profiting from this exploitation.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: We'll be following this story and seeing how it plays out in the coming months.
--:-- Doug Owens: Thanks for listening to The Journal.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: If you like our show, follow us on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: We're out every weekday afternoon.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Thanks for listening.
--:-- [Theme music fades in]
--:-- Ryan Knutson: Thanks for listening to The Journal.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: If you like our show, follow us on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: We're out every weekday afternoon.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: Thanks for listening.
--:-- Ryan Knutson: And that's a wrap.
--:-- Jessica Mendoza: See you tomorrow.
--:-- [Theme music fades out]
