YouTube's Latest Parental Controls construct It Easier to Monitor Teen Content Creators

Parents are likely familiar with YouTube's controls to better manage what little ones can watch on the video giant. But YouTube has just rolled out a better way for parents to better understand what their teen content creators are doing on the platform.

Collaboration Between Teens and Parents

To use the features starting this week, parents and teens will first need to link their accounts in YouTube's Family Center. Once it's done, parents can view information about their teen's channel activity on YouTube. This will include the number of uploads, subscriptions, and comments—even on unlisted videos. Both parents and teens will also receive an email notification on specific events that include a video upload or live stream.

In a blog post, YouTube noted that this is the "first iteration" of the experiment. It will also include advice to both parents and teens on creating responsible content from Common Sense Networks affiliated with Common Sense Media.

With mutual control in place, teens and parents can choose to unlink their accounts at any time if they don't want information shared.

Presently, YouTube Kids and supervised gests forpre-teens reach further than 100 million logged-in and logged-out observers each month. However, be sure to check out what you need to know about YouTube Kids, If you have a youthful child.

In late 2023, YouTube limited recommendations for videos that may be problematic if viewed by teenagers.

A Great Tool for Parents

It's nice to see YouTube create a well-conceived tool for parents to better monitor what their young content creator is doing on the service. Instead of treating teens like a toddler, this feature helps parents and teens communicate about what's being posted. And that should give parents better peace of mind about how their teen is using YouTube.

While parents likely think first about how their teen is using social media like Snapchat or Instagram, YouTube is a popular way for kids to express themselves and has a number of social features. My teenage daughter is not a YouTube content creator, but if she ever expressed interest in starting her own channel, a tool like this would make me feel a lot better about giving it a try.