Popular YouTube videos raise issue of bad parenting

“Parenting seems to be about getting your child in an horribly embarrassing situation on video and getting that video up on YouTube,” said 97.3 KIRO FM host Dori Monson in a discussion of a new kid-after-dentist video circulating on the internet.

“You all remember David after Dentist, the little kid coming home from the dentist, well now we have Nina after dentist.”

“David after Dentist” has 107,636,617 views on YouTube. The video spawned spoofs, remixes and apparently inspired other parents to grab the camera when their kids were doped up after dental treatment.

Nina, the star of the latest after-dentist viral hit, looks to be about 16.

“The mother is like – ‘oh this is gold. This is the second time I’ve had to tell her she had her wisdom teeth out and she’s got gauze in her mouth. Maybe she’ll repeat it a third time. It will add to the humor,'” said 97.3 KIRO FM host John Curley.

“She looks just completely whacked out, poor little Nina there,” said Monson.

Curley asked his show mates if they thought this was bad parenting.

“I think it’s fairly clear that anyone who would videotape their child in a precarious situation like that is obviously an awful parent,” said producer Owen Murphy.

“Shame on these parents, shame on all of them,” said Monson.

Curley did admit that he was guilty of once going to the camera when his daughter was struggling with their leaf blower.

“If you’re little and you point it down, it actually lifts you off the ground,” said Curley, playing the video from his phone, where his daughter could be heard screaming. “I’m like if she can get airborne for like 5 seconds it’s YouTube gold.”

His daughter never got high enough that he thought it would make a YouTube hit. While her screams sound bad, he said there wasn’t a lot of real risk in the situation. Even so, he said he’ll never do it again.

Producer Owen Murphy didn’t believe Curley. “I don’t think that’s true actually.”

By JAMIE GRISWOLD, MyNorthwest.com Editor