Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing

I've seen a lot of Netflix documentaries and this one definitely is a stand out. With these types of docs, I'm used to my time being wasted and treated like i'm barely even watching. Surprisingly almost every bit of this documentary is disturbing and telling. It is a problem I was vaguely aware of but not nearly to this extent or what was really at play. There are many jaw dropping moments and it has a lot of substance to really think about. While at times the interviews are a bit frustrating because of the lack of accountability and blame shifting, I think it leaves a lot of food for thought and effectively reveals the truth.

This documentary offers a sobering look at the dark side of family content creation on YouTube, highlighting how easily people can become consumed by the pursuit of fame and money. It reveals the alarming greed of certain parents, the disturbing ease with which others look the other way, and the profound, lasting damage inflicted on the children involved. The emotional and psychological toll is both eye-opening and heartbreaking. If you're a parent, aunt, uncle, or have any teens in your life, this is an essential watch. It's also clear that the filmmakers intentionally left out some of the most horrific details-likely to protect the children-which makes what they do show all the more chilling and powerful.

Well if you know Lethal Weapon, you know where I was going with this (though I imagine even without knowing it most will be able to guess) ... that said and as always: no pun intended. The show shines a light on a phenomena ... I mean to me kid beauty shows are a monstrosity ... so there is that ... but this is about influencer.

Not easy to watch - and while those accused did not respond to many requests, I think we can all make up our own minds what that is telling us ... or the world. There are quite the serious allegations and accusations hurled and thrown ... even if only half of it is true ... crazy I'd say.

The world is changing - but as parents eveyone is still meant to protect their kids ... and not make money off of them ... well not at every price/cost (again no pun intended) ... just saying ... and it's also what this docu show is saying.

"Bad Influence" is a grim 3-part Netflix docuseries about kidfluencers and the awful parents who monetize their childhoods for clicks. It's well-produced, but the whole thing feels exploitative, invasive, and downright icky. I'm grateful we don't have children; I can't imagine raising a kid in an age where everyone has the attention span of a gnat. AND where kids take life advice from someone like Piper Rockelle, who I only know because she did a cursed collab with the witless Katy Perry, who recently rode Bezos' penis rocket into space cosplay with Gayle King (who is now shocked, shocked!, by backlash). This series rightly lays blame on the momagers, the platforms, and the adult enablers, especially the legions of creepy men who follow these minors and collect photos like they're Pokémon cards. I may not be a digital native (I still remember our first VCR), but I do know this: nothing about this influencer economy feels safe, decent, or sane.

This is a show about something that needs to be talked about a lot more than it actually is! Super heartbreaking to see these kids manipulated like that! The second episode absolutely broke me, its so sad how this mom is allowed to get away with horrible things. I hope that when piper turns 18 she has the courage to come out about all this abuse. I would recommend watching this show, not in a public place because you might shed a tear or two. I think this is eye opening to many people, before this documentary I would see piper getting a lot of hate for her actions but after an inside look it makes sense.