Online child exploitation could be curbed after House passes bill [Video]

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) – Protecting kids from being the subject of exploitation on the internet took a step forward Wednesday in the Minnesota House.

If they’re under 14 years old, it would keep them out of any significant amount of for-profit content, including advertising and so-called “mommy vlogs.”

Using kids to sell products on social media has become a billion dollar industry.

A New York Times report showed a lot of that money is generated by parents sharing photos of their daughters.

In several cases, mothers expressed regret at possibly scarring their girls by having them make money by posing in leotards or bikinis.

“I’ve been stupidly, naively feeding a pack of monsters and the regret is huge,” said Rep. Zack Stephenson, (DFL-Coon Rapids), quoting a mother interviewed for the Times’ story.

Rep. Stephenson wrote a bill to make sure kids in social media content get paid for their work.

But after hearing the stories …