YouTube or not YouTube?
James Ricketson asks an ethical question: does a filmmaker have the right to post footage of minors online, without the parents’ explicit permission?
The boys and girls I was filming on the beach were mostly pre-teens. “Where are you going to show it?” a girl about nine asked. “Maybe on the internet,” I replied without thinking. “On YouTube.” The kids screamed so loudly with delight the sound on my camera distorted. I didn’t have permission from these kids’ parents to film, and, of course, no permission to post images of them on the internet. It was not until the following day that it occurred to me that this might be a problem.
Rewind. It’s late Saturday afternoon, a few hours from Earth Hour. I learn that festivities will start at sunset on Whale Beach, close to where I live in Sydney. It will be a family affair – picnic, music, a community get-together. The highlight will be a procession along the beach – each of several dozen kids carrying a small lantern they have made themselves that afternoon. I’m a filmmaker and I’ve documented many such local events over the years so I turn up with my camera.
The procession during Earth Hour is led by drummers, followed by a large white translucent paper whale lit from inside. Surrounded by kids with their lanterns. Beautiful. The kids have a ball. Many of them perform for the camera in the way kids do in silly home movies – mimicking gestures from favourite TV shows, flashing ‘V’ for Victory signs, shouting comments (“I love you mum” “Go Mona Vale”) into my microphone, pulling faces.
Given that it’s a community event I plan to edit the footage together, post it on YouTube and let as many people know about it as I can. The word will spread, I think to myself, and everyone involved (especially the kids) will get a buzz out of seeing themselves in a nice little document of a community event.
As I edit the footage, freeze framing on smiling faces, the question arises: “Can I just put this on the internet without asking the permission of the parents?” This is impossible. There were hundreds of people on the beach. There was no way I could make contact with the parents of all the kids I filmed. Was I making a mountain out of a mole hill in even considering that there was an ethical question to be dealt with here? After all, it was a community event in a public place designed to raise awareness about global warming. On the other hand there may be some parents who do not want images of their children available for all to see. I imagined a scenario in which I did post my film on the internet and was then confronted in the street by an angry parent asking: “What right do you have to post an image
of my daughter on the internet?” I had no idea how I might have responded to such a demand.
I decided to ask some friends what they thought I should do – post or not post. (I’d already made up my mind what I was going to do but I was interested to find out what others thought was the appropriate course of action.)
“I just did a quick survey of the mum’s with toddlers,” replied one friend, “and they all thought if filmed from a distance and kid’s indistinguishable fine but if you can see faces they would be shocked to find their child on You Tube.” Would anyone want to see a film record of a community event shot from a distance with indistinguishable faces?
Another was “Your intent is a community story of young and old and I think you should go with that. Show it as a family thing like all stuff on Facebook.” I pointed out that I was surrounded by screaming pre-teen boys and girls who all wanted to be filmed so there are many more ‘cute’ kids than there are adults in my footage.”
And this, from a 28-year old. Why would parents objects to footage of their children appearing on YouTube? It is the modern digital age and this stuff is just absolutely common place. The kids can sit around, film each other on their mobile phones, then instantly upload it to YouTube themselves anyway. There are literally millions of videos on YouTube uploaded by random people which contain footage of other random people that they don’t know, so what, who cares, that is the world now, the only time it would ever be a problem is if the footage is damaging, or offensive in some way, otherwise, I think people are just going to be excited to see themselves on the internet.
Another friend, in her late 20’s, was more blunt: “God…… I don’t see why those kids shouldn’t get to enjoy seeing themselves on ‘TV” just cause someone might jack off to it…. what has the world come to? Stupid. I bet it wouldn’t matter if you were a woman. I wish the paedophile police would GO GET FUCKED… instead of ruining everyone’s normal lives with their paranoid bullshit….. thank you.”
And this from the father of teenage kids. “It is necessary to have the parent’s permission before you film such an event. It’s a pity the moment passed when someone could have asked, “Any objections to this being filmed and posted on the net ? Parents should have the right of control over images taken of their children. ” All well and good if you are in a position to ask several hundred people spread out on a beach. I was not. It would have been impossible for anyone on that beach not to have seen me filming as I used a small sun gun to illuminate all that I filmed. If any parent had a problem with me filming their children I figured (in retrospect) that they would have let me know quick fast.
In other situations, all around the world, I have had adults come up to me and ask what I am filming and why? This is perfectly reasonable and, I think, a responsible thing for an adult to do when a man is filming kids.
One filmmaker friend wrote, “Your uncertainty is something I am happy to see. Too many pieces of video information are posted onto the net these days without thought to the moral underpinning. Younger gen filmmakers have a propensity to not think of long term consequences of loading footage on line in relation to ANYTHING! Big Brother is almost upon us and the younger filmmakers don’t care.”
Judging by the number of emails in my inbox this morning (that I have not got time to read just now) this is a topic on which there are a lot of people who feel quite strongly one way or another.
I had already decided, before I did my informal survey, not to post this brief record of a community event on YouTube but I really have no idea whether I’ve made the right decision!
Whilst I agree with your decision in light of the personal risks that it carries, I’m also appalled that we have come to this situation where the paranoid are running society and our institutions. Or is it part of that unmentionable push to somehow outlaw the internet so that big biz media may continue to thrive and so that censorship and propaganda may continue unchecked.
I guess it is out of question for you post the video onto YouTube anonymously, since many people have seen you filming and may track it back to you.
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A good topic of conversation, James.
It is not, I believe, OK to film or photograph kids and put them on to the internet as anything other than part of a crowd. Kids mugging to camera in close up and shots that otherwise involve kids in close up may be an infringement of the laws in many states. If you are doing it ‘for profit’ in any way (e.g. you are receiving payment or payment in kind – even a sausage roll), it is absolutely not acceptable in Victoria and Qld as it would be defined under the legislation as work. In NSW, the Office of the Children’s Guardian absents itself from decision making where children themselves are not being paid.
I fully understand the arguments about the ‘fun police’ but given kids are not in a position (under 16) to give permission themselves, I would not film anyone under that age without their parents or guardian’s permission. Kids may load up pictures of themselves onto the net but that is between them and their parents.
The issue is not of someone thinking about the questions of appropriateness but of those who would (and do) use the ambiguity around these issues for exploitation. I would not have felt great when my kids were young about a guy walking around on a beach or in a school yard with a camera filming them without knowing who they were.
It is a contentious area and good that you have raised it.
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I wouldn’t post the piece I shot anonymously for ethical reasons but even if I did everyone in the community knows me by sight and would know who did it. In fact, given that everyone on the beach (and there were several hundred) could not have faield to see me filming it could be argued that it was up to the parents to come up to me and ask what I was doing and why. And if they had any concern about the possibility of their kid winding upon the internet they could have let me know. The alternative, much suggested, is that I could have approached the several hundred people on the beach and asked permission. Not a practical possibility.
So, a few friends have seen the DVD I have made and loved it. All the others in the community and especially the kids who are in it and were so looing forward to seeing it, will not see it. this will apply to any future community events that I might film. C’est la vie!
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In reality, doesn’t this mean people can no longer make films that involve just about any public event or gathering where the public happens to be visible? Will every passing face, logo and billboard soon need to be pixelated? Then only feature films with enormous budgets could show (or rather depict) the outside world, and all progress towards accessibility to filmmaking will come to nothing. I have a 9-year-old son. If some pervert happens to check him out during swimming carnival – or take his photo playing soccer in the oval across the road – how should I prevent it? Keep him locked up at home? Consider all photographers peterphiles? People who make a scene anytime they spot someone shooting in the vicinity of minors are simply offloading their own shit onto an accepted target.
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