To Share or not to Share?

To share or not to share? Is sharenting the latest parenting trend? And should we give more consideration to the people who we are putting on social media?

I’m sure we all read about it at some point over the last few days. Apple Martin, publicly criticising her mother, Gwyneth Paltrow, for sharing a photo of her on social media without her consent. While some labelled her a spoilt brat, others lauded the teen for standing up for herself.

When it comes to celebrity children some people may feel it’s fair game. There are families like the Kardashians who probably invented sharenting with momager Kris at the helm. Then there are also families like the Carters (Beyonce and Jay-Z), who are protective over the images of their twins. Which is hardly surprising considering the trolling their now seven year-old daughter received on social media.

However, the sharenting trend is not limited to celebrity children and some teens are choosing to opt out of social media altogether. And while I may try to allude to a level of privacy for my children, I know that I am also guilty of oversharing.

Are you an oversharer?

Here are my top 5 tips to avoid being found guilty of sharenting. If you have an image or comment about your child that you want to take, follow these 5 simple steps:

1. Don’t share it, don’t share any information about your child online.

2. If you really want to share it, think about how it could be perceived by others. Could it affect your child negatively if they found out about it when they were older?

3. If your child is old enough to understand the consequences of sharing information online, ask them if it’s okay to share a photo or comment about them on social media before doing so.

4. If you do share a photo or comment about your child online, make sure it’s restricted to only people you know in real life and genuinely care to see your posts.

5. If your child asks you to take a post down or is hurt by a comment you have made, respect them.

You can read the article about Gwyneth Paltrow and her daughter here. Has it made you feel differently about sharing photos of your children on social media?