Melbourne-based fitness influencer Steph Claire-Smith has spoken out about her decision to blur out her three-year-old son Harvey’s face.
In a video posted to her Instagram Stories over the weekend, the KIC co-founder and model explained why she and husband Josh Miller chose to blur the boy’s face in a video of their family attending a monster truck show. I explained why.
Watch the video above: The influencer explains her decision to blur out her son’s face.
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“I can’t believe we’re taking the time to talk about this,” the 30-year-old mother said in the video.
“But to be honest, some people…I’ve talked about this before in stories and on podcasts.”
She said her son is now “at an age where we can’t always take care of him and he looks like a little boy.”
“He’s become much more famous than he was before,” Smith said.
Steph Claire Smith is addressing comments after she blurred out her son’s face. Credit: stephclairesmith/Instagram
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Steph Claire Smith was on her regular daily walk when she noticed a van starting to follow her.
Steph Claire Smith was on her regular daily walk when she noticed a van starting to follow her.
Smith said the decision was made after a fan approached the family in public and mentioned Harvey’s name.
“And that’s very confusing for the boy.”
Since Harvey was due to start school soon, they decided to avoid posting images of him online and avoid showing his face when they did.
“That’s our decision as his parents,” Smith said.
“I’m completely baffled that people feel completely in tune with your life and your choices.
“I understand that there are pictures of him from the past and so on.
“Our intention was not to remove him from the internet completely.
“He looks like a young boy, so I wanted to avoid wanting to decorate him with something as he grows up.”
Steph Claire Smith and her husband Josh Miller. Credit: stephclairesmith/Instagram
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Fitness star Steph Claire Smith confesses to ‘spying’ on her babysitter
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She said she was “so disgusted” by the “judgment” whether fans agreed with the decision or not.
“If that’s not what you want to do, that’s fine,” Smith continued.
“I’ve avoided putting it in his face, and that’s fine.
“But that monster truck video was really special to me. We had so much fun as a family that I wanted to share it.
“It was like Harvey’s cutest reaction and we had the best time.”
Her clarification comes after very mixed reactions to Smith’s monster truck video.
“Are you hiding his face now?” one asked.
One user said, “Oh my god, that’s it. Blurry face did it for me,” before tagging a friend.
They answered, “We’ve seen him a million times,” and “That’s why it’s strange.”
Steph Claire Smith has been actively trying to hide her son’s face in recent months. Credit: stephclairesmith/Instagram
However, others praised her actions.
One user said: “I’m so glad you blocked his face. Good for you mom.”
“I love this. Thank you for keeping my child’s identity a secret and protecting it on the internet,” said another.
Some directly mentioned Smith’s son’s previous posts and the need to start blurring him out.
“Becoming a parent in the age of social media is an entirely new phenomenon, let alone having a public following. As children grow older and develop more distinct characteristics, their decisions and emotions change. “I have something to do,” one person began.
“Like Steph said, everyone has the right to make their own decisions. This obviously feels right for families and the way they want to protect their children. The internet is a vast and scary place. I totally understand. I’d rather know which app I should use to do the same thing!”
Another wrote: “I just saw your story about Harvey…before I saw it, I thought it was odd that his face was blurred out in this, but I think it’s funny how you let people he doesn’t know interact with him.” As soon as I said what it was like, it was confusing for him, but it made perfect sense.”
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