I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose.
~Woody Allen
Laughing baby, so simply put, had a laugh that has potential to change a life. With his father’s “Bings” and ”Pops”, the child laughed his way to over 88 million views on YouTube. While this seems like an ephemeral example of a proud father sharing his sons adorable laugh, it could have important implications.
In each view, laughing baby is defined by his appearance. Although this is an example of a positive attribute, if later in life the child is branded as such, he could face negative consequences. Daniel J. Solove explains,
Protection against disclosure permits room to change, to define oneself and one’s future without becoming a “prisoner of (one’s) recorded past.” Society has a tendency to tie people too tightly to the past and to typecast people in particular roles. The human personality is dynamic, yet accepting the complete implications of this fact can be difficult.
What Solove explains is that Laughing Baby may become “Laughing Baby” for life. If he chooses to disclose this information about his past, people could brand him as just a cute face.
More importantly, YouTube in such a situation opens up many other questions about individuality and privacy. Laughing Baby has been copied and mimicked countless times. People have placed similar examples of their children and provoking them to laugh.
While the video is cute the first time, it’s uniqueness is what makes it so. It loses it’s luster after seeing many variations. This can take away attention with the poster may have desired.
The video also questions privacy. Laughing Baby, nor his parents were not required to sign consent to distribute the images. Laughing Baby may, upon maturation, realize that it is not his desire to be viewed tens of millions of times. These views cannot be taken back and he has been irreconcilably put on parade.
While such videos seem innocent, they can in fact lead to greater than expected repercussions.
