By Olivia Mangelli, Staff Writer
On Feb. 27, Hulu released an original eight-part documentary series about family vlogger Ruby Franke and the horrors she put her family through on and off camera.
Franke and her children were part of a very successful family vlogging channel on YouTube called “8 Passengers”, which surpassed over 2.3 million subscribers before the channel was deleted in 2022.
Franke would publish vlogs covering the day-to-day activities of her children. The vlogs also included more personal topics such as disciplining her children and enforcing strict rules, where she often shared controversial punishments such as withholding meals, making them sleep on the floor, and publicly shaming them for misbehavior.
The docu-series also highlights how Jodi Hildebrandt, the founder of ConneXions, a life coaching and counseling program, became involved in Franke’s life.
ConneXions was known for idolizing and promoting strict, extreme parenting styles that closely aligned with Franke’s own beliefs, further escalating her controversial disciplinary methods toward her children.
Viewers of the docu-series also saw Ring camera footage of Franke’s youngest son, pleading for help with his neighbors after escaping out of a window, clearly showing signs of malnutrition and abuse. The neighbors called authorities and they found another one of her kids, her youngest daughter, with a shaved head, locked in the corner of a closet extremely malnourished, and showing signs of severe abuse and neglect.
These horrifying conditions of the children and more evidence found throughout the house led to the immediate arrest of Ruby Franke and Jodi Hildebrandt on Aug. 30, 2023. The docuseries includes interviews with Ruby’s husband, Kevin, and her two oldest children Shari and Chad as they recap moments in their lives that led to their mother’s arrest.
Speaking with Taylor Hall, a senior graphic design major, she discussed her opinions on the docu-series after watching it.
“I was sick to my stomach after watching it. Some of the footage like the little boy running to his neighbors all bruised and skinny was so disturbing I had to pause it like 8 different times,” Hall said.
Hall further discussed how she first learned of the Franke family.
“I remember seeing videos on TikTok about them a couple of years ago and then seeing Ruby get arrested a couple of months later and I was shocked,” Hall said. “I feel so bad for the kids but I’m so relieved they are finally getting justice for what happened to them.”
Senior psychology major Kaitlyn Lutz also shares her opinions about the docuseries.
“I was appalled watching this and so disturbed. I can’t believe her husband, (Kevin) still said he loved Ruby and he forgives her,” Lutz said. “I don’t believe that he didn’t know what was going on, to me that just doesn’t sit right. It showed the horrors of exploiting your family for money and views and the damage it can do. I feel terrible for the kids.”
This docu-series explored the negative effects of showcasing your children on social platforms in addition to the internal and external damages it can cause to everyone involved. Those kids have to live the rest of their lives with this trauma while trying to rebuild their identities.
Fortunately, she was caught before any more irreversible damage was caused to her kids, and hopefully knowing she will never hurt them again makes them sleep a little better at night. Hopefully, this docu-series and this whole situation will make people more aware of signs of abuse and the dark sides of internet fame.
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