The Impact of Parents Overexposing Kids on Social Media

By Soha Mahapatra

The children born into today's society will have screens shoved in their faces from birth. iPads with engaging toddler shows and video games specifically catered to younger kids are in their prime. However, one form of children's exposure to technology isn't thought about as often and yet is incredibly controversial. In our society in the age of social media, young parents have begun to share every detail of their child's life, documenting everything from first words to first steps. This may seem cute and unique; if a parent can record and share their child's milestones, why shouldn't they? However, the personal, social, and cultural impact this oversharing may have needs to be discussed.

It's essential to define what precisely oversharing is. For example, an individual posting a gender reveal online, announcing the birth of their child, or posting significant milestones, like birthdays, are celebrations and not necessarily oversharing.

The line between appropriate levels of celebrating your child and negatively contributing to their digital footprint is thin. It's all about the content shared and the intent for sharing it.

Sometimes, content can be harmless, not giving away too much personal information or showing children on the actual screen for too long. But, there are some safety guidelines parents are crossing for reasons including getting famous or clouting off their children's daily lives, or just not thinking about the future implications before posting. We learn from a young age what to and what not to share online, such as ages, addresses, locations, and other private information.

Still, some parents have begun to disregard this education and start posting about their young children without consent. This poses many risks for the future of these children and our social media-centered culture as a whole.

parents don't realize that sharing personal information about their children puts them at risk for crimes such as identity theft or privacy violations.

It can also lead to humiliation, future discrimination, or general developmental issues. As a child is too young to give consent regarding this information being posted, it leaves a gap on what support is when they grow older, leading to future issues and feelings of violation in their own home. Anyone can access information someone posts on the internet, from best friends to strangers. And not everyone has the best intentions at heart. Parents who share the location of their children online- for example, "We're going to this new juice shop in Smithtown, New Jersey!"- are creating a potential target for kidnappers. Another big issue within this issue is parents using their kids for internet clout. They may overshare about their children for advertising, gaining viewers, or making money through promotions.

The most significant part of this issue is the differentiation between anonymously celebrating your children, using your children to make money, gaining viewership, or just accidentally posting too much. While blogs advertising hacks or products for parents are helpful, these blogs that use children to promote their products or hacks without their consent aren't good for the development or future of the children featured.

We need to teach our future generation how to navigate this dangerous online world they've been born into, starting with educating them on what they should and should not be posting.

How can we do that if the parents of these children are sharing every tiny detail online? The same goes for consent and control over online presence. If someone isn't old enough to agree to be on the internet, they shouldn't be on the internet, plain and simple. Children's voices matter, and by not giving them a chance to create their internet presence, you've eradicated that chance of a voice and independence. While sharing about children online may have some uses, it is unsafe, unhealthy, and shouldn't be done until these children are old enough to give their two cents on how they want to be represented online.