The Rise and Fall of Ruby Franke: A Tale of Abuse, Deception, and the Dangers of Social Media
Ruby Franke, once a beloved Utah-based parenting blogger and YouTube personality, has seen her life spiral into chaos following her conviction for child abuse. Franke, a 43-year-old mother of six, and her partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, a 55-year-old mother of two, were arrested in August 2023 for abusing two of Franke’s youngest children—a 9-year-old girl and a 12-year-old boy. Both women pleaded guilty to four counts of second-degree aggravated child abuse in December 2023 and were sentenced to serve four consecutive terms of between 30 and 60 years in prison. The case has shocked millions who once admired Franke for her seemingly perfect family life and parenting advice, which she shared through her popular YouTube channel, 8Passengers, and later through a joint venture called ConneXions Classrooms with Hildebrandt.
Franke’s husband, Kevin, has since spoken out about the situation, expressing regret for how he handled his wife’s downward spiral. In an interview with Good Morning America, Kevin revealed that he had trusted Ruby and a licensed mental health counselor, who he now believes gave terrible advice. While he admitted his love for Ruby would never fade, he made it clear that she would not be welcomed back into his or their children’s lives. Kevin also warned of the dangers of social media, emphasizing how sharing intimate details of family life can lead to unforeseen consequences. The Franke family’s once-private life was thrust into the public eye, and the consequences have been devastating.
Before her downfall, Ruby Franke had built a lucrative career as a parenting influencer. Her 8Passengers channel, which featured her husband and their six children, had amassed over 2.5 million subscribers and became the family’s primary source of income. Viewers were drawn to the intimate glimpses of the Franke family’s life, which appeared idyllic and well-managed. However, cracks began to show when her eldest son casually mentioned in one video that he had been sleeping on a beanbag for seven months as punishment for his behavior. This revelation marked the beginning of the end for 8Passengers, and Franke’s popularity began to decline.
In an effort to revitalize her career, Franke teamed up with her friend Jodi Hildebrandt to create ConneXions Classrooms, a parenting and lifestyle vlog that offered counseling sessions, packages, and retreats priced from a few hundred to several thousand dollars. The duo presented themselves as parenting experts, coaching others on how to raise their children “in truth.” However, their advice often verged on extreme. In one chilling episode, Franke likened disciplining children to physically beating them, saying, “If your child comes to you on fire, you don’t pat them on the head and say, ‘It’s OK, I’ll help you.’ No, you beat them, and you kick them, and you hit them with a rod.” This rhetoric, combined with the eventual exposure of their abusive actions, has left many questioning how such a toxic message could have gone unchecked.
The abuses committed by Franke and Hildebrandt were only exposed after one of Franke’s sons fled Hildebrandt’s multimillion-dollar home in Ivins, Utah, and sought help from a neighbor. The boy was found malnourished with duct tape on his wrists and ankles, a sight so disturbing that the neighbor immediately called 911. This incident was the culmination of years of efforts by Franke’s eldest daughter, Shari, who had repeatedly tried to alert child protective services to the abuse occurring within her family. The case has raised important questions about the failure of authorities to intervene earlier and the dangers of outsourcing parenting decisions to unqualified influencers.
Kevin Franke and his eldest son, Chad, have now spoken out about the chaos they witnessed firsthand. Chad recalled the chaotic and tumultuous environment created by his mother’s social media career, describing it as filled with “lots of yelling, lots of snapping, lots of time-outs in the corner.” Both Kevin and Chad are appearing in a new documentary, Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke, which sheds light on the abuse and manipulation that occurred behind closed doors. The documentary includes previously unaired footage of Ruby lashing out at her family, including a disturbing clip where she orders Chad to “fake being happy.” These revelations have left viewers grappling with the stark contrast between the Franke family’s online persona and the horrific reality of their home life.
The case of Ruby Franke serves as a stark reminder of the dangers of presenting a curated version of life on social media. Franke’s descent into abuse was masked by her carefully crafted image as a loving mother and parenting expert, a facade that deceived even her own husband. The case has sparked broader conversations about the rights of children whose lives are shared publicly by their parents and the potential for abuse when influencers are given unchecked authority. As the Franke family continues to grapple with the aftermath of Ruby’s crimes, their story serves as a cautionary tale about the darker side of social media fame and the importance of scrutinizing the advice of online personalities.
