YouTubers Prompt Florida Schools to Look at Restricting Video Recording on Campus
These days YouTube is a way of living for some families. But are families going too far by recording a school campus and its students for a YouTube video?
- By Sherelle Black
- August 29, 2019
A simple search of “back to school” on YouTube and students in elementary school up to college will appear. The videos range from shopping for school supplies to getting ready for school. In some cases, YouTubers have uploaded videos discussing and filming their schools and teachers.
These videos make YouTubers money, but is recording their life at school an invasion of privacy?
It is for two Pasco County schools in Florida, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
Emma and Ellie DeLucio, who have over a million followers on YouTube, uploaded a video in August giving a tour of their schools.
Since the video was uploaded, parents and students have complained and asked the school and the school district to make the YouTubers take the video down. The complaints center around invasion of privacy and safety issues.
“This video makes me feel unsafe in my own school," student Madison Kirk wrote to the school board, “as it shows hallways, classrooms, portables, entrances and exits, as well as every angle of the school, ranging from parking lots to the bus loop. I would like to see this video be taken down as soon as possible, as this could further escalate to a bigger issue than a YouTube video.”
One of the school’s principals did ask the family to take the video down, but the mother declined.
However, the DeLucios will not be filming again on the campus as they will be cited for trespassing if they were to film again.
Since the incident, the district has decided to look into ways to clarify its stance on recording without getting permission first. It already has such rules in place for employees and for students, but not for parents and other visitors.
About the Author
Sherelle Black is a Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.