Parents in California who earn money from social media posts with their minor children will be required to keep a portion of the income for the children, under two measures approved by Governor Gavin Newsom.
California led the nation nearly 80 years ago in establishing regulations to protect child actors from financial abuse, but those regulations needed updating, Newsom said. The existing law covers children working in film and television, but does not extend to minors who make a name for themselves on platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
Family vlogs, where influencers share details of their daily lives with many strangers online, have become a popular and lucrative way to make money.
Family vlogs today share intimate details of children's lives – toilet training, illnesses, bad behavior, new experiences – for strangers to see. Experts say this can cause great harm to children.
"Much has changed since the early days of Hollywood, but here in California, our narrow focus on protecting children from exploitation remains the same," the governor said in a statement.
“In old Hollywood, child actors were exploited. In 2024, it’s now underage influencers. Today, this modern exploitation ends with two new laws to protect young influencers on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and other social platforms.”
California's measures apply to all children under 18. They received broad and unopposed support and require parents and guardians who monetize their children's online presence to establish a trust fund for their children.
Parents will have to keep records of the minutes their children appear in their online content and how much money they earn from those posts, among other things. The laws give child influencers a percentage of revenue based on how often they appear on blogs, videos or online content that generates at least 10 cents per view. Children can sue their parents for failing to comply.
Children who work as content creators on platforms like YouTube will also have at least 15% of their earnings deposited into a trust fund until they turn 18.
The new laws will come into effect next year.
The new laws protecting underage influencers are part of Newsom's ongoing efforts to address the mental health impacts of social media, especially when used by children.
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Source: Associated Press
