Raised for Views: Investigative Journalist Kat Tenbarge on the Dark Side of Kidfluencer Fame
What happens when a child is raised as content, and then grows up in front of the same audience that watched her childhood unfold?
In this episode, Sarah is joined by investigative journalist Kat Tenbarge, author of Spitfire News, for an important conversation about kidfluencer culture, creator exploitation, parasocial audiences, and the attention economy shaping the next generation.
Kat has spent years reporting on internet culture, influencer abuse, online harassment, and the systems that turn children into profitable brands. Together, Sarah and Kat unpack the cultural fallout surrounding Piper Rockelle’s rise to YouTube fame, the allegations made by former members of her “Piper Squad,” and the troubling trajectory from child stardom to increasingly sexualized adult content.
They discuss why these stories are so difficult to talk about responsibly, what happens when children are taught that their relationships, identities, and private lives are part of a business model, and why parents cannot assume that kids who grow up online automatically have strong digital literacy skills.
This episode also explores the broader “kidfluencer-to-OnlyFans pipeline,” the online culture that rewards girls and young women for sexualization, the role of male creators and podcast culture in profiting from and degrading women simultaneously, and why empathy, not condemnation, is essential when discussing young people who have been exploited online.
In this episode:
Piper Rockelle’s rise as one of YouTube’s most successful child creators
The blurred line between scripted content, reality, and exploitation in kidfluencer culture
Why “boyfriend,” cheating, and sexualized storylines were so profitable for child creators
The psychological impact of growing up with every friendship, conflict, and milestone turned into content
How child creators can become financially responsible for the adults around them
Why fame, luxury, and viral success can still coexist with isolation and loneliness
The pressure creators face to produce content across multiple platforms, constantly
Why so many young viewers struggle to distinguish staged content from reality
The risks of young audiences following creators as their content becomes increasingly sexualized
The misleading fantasy of fast wealth promoted through platforms like OnlyFans
Whether we are witnessing a broader child-creator-to-adult-content pipeline
Most importantly, Sarah and Kat offer a reminder for parents: we may not be able to remove every harmful message from the internet, but we can build stronger relationships with our children, talk openly about what they are seeing, and help them develop the critical thinking skills to navigate digital spaces with more resilience.
Chapters
(00:00) When a Child Creator Becomes an Adult Brand
(03:21) Piper Rockelle’s Rise—and the Early Red Flags
(15:08) Scripted Clickbait, Sexualization & Lost Childhoods
(22:48) The Multimillion-Dollar Business of Kidfluencer Fame
(30:28) The Attention Economy: Why Creators Keep Escalating
(36:39) Young Audiences, Adult Content & the Bop House Effect
(42:50) Is There a Kidfluencer-to-OnlyFans Pipeline?
(51:43) Supporting Victims Instead of Shaming Them
(1:01:11) What Parents Can Do: Digital Literacy, Connection & Conversation
About Kat Tenbarge
Kat Tenbarge is an investigative journalist and the author of Spitfire News, where she reports on internet culture, influencer exploitation, online abuse, politics, and the systems shaping life online. Her reporting has examined major creator scandals, child influencer culture, abuse allegations involving online personalities, and the real-world consequences of platform-driven fame.
Connect with Kat
Website: https://spitfirenews.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kattenbarge/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/kattenbarge.bsky.social
Connect with Sarah Adams:
https://momuncharted.com/
https://www.instagram.com/mom.uncharted/
https://www.tiktok.com/@mom.uncharted
http://parentsuncharted.com/
https://www.instagram.com/parents.uncharted/
https://www.tiktok.com/@parents.uncharted
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