Chad Franke, son of convicted child abuser and former YouTube personality Ruby Franke, is finally breaking his silence. Nearly two years after his mother received a sentence of up to six decades in prison, he’s begun to share his story, a story steeped in manipulation and control, through a series of raw, vulnerable TikTok videos.
“Hi, my name is Chad, and I used to be very brainwashed,” he states directly to the camera, a startling confession delivered with unwavering clarity. He acknowledges the overwhelming requests for a book detailing his experiences, but dismisses the idea of relying on someone else to tell his truth. He possesses something far more personal – a record of his own thoughts, penned during the darkest of times.
Chad’s chosen method is uniquely intimate: he’s revisiting 2023, the year before his mother’s sentencing, and reading aloud from his daily journal entries. He intends to share every single entry, offering an unvarnished glimpse into the reality he lived, a reality carefully constructed by his mother and her influence.
One early entry, dated January 22, 2023, paints a deceptively normal picture – church with roommates, a friendly game of Mario Kart, and the preparation of a family favorite, “funeral potatoes.” But the normalcy quickly fractures. A two-hour phone call with his mother followed, a conversation focused on the eradication of “lust,” a concept that consumed much of their interactions.
The journal reveals a young man striving for self-improvement, meticulously outlining goals: scripture study, financial literacy, a demanding Python coding course, and continued cooking. He saw his job as a lifeguard as an opportunity to demonstrate his devotion, a constant test of resisting temptation. It was a life rigidly defined by control and perceived sin.
Chad is careful to clarify his perspective. He emphasizes that not everything within those pages was inherently negative. Scripture, cooking, even speaking with his mother – these weren’t inherently harmful. He’s not condemning everything from his past, but rather presenting his story, a complex narrative of manipulation and a desperate search for meaning.
Another entry details his observations as a lifeguard, a vantage point that forced him to confront the duality of human interaction. He witnessed countless choices, opportunities to respond with compassion or succumb to “lust.” He recognized the deeply ingrained nature of his struggles, acknowledging that overcoming a lifetime of conditioning would require relentless effort and discipline.
The story unfolds against the backdrop of the 8Passengers YouTube channel, a once-popular platform that showcased the Franke family’s life to over two million followers. The channel’s decline began with a single video, a confession from Chad about being punished with a beanbag chair for months. It was a crack in the carefully curated facade, a glimpse of the harsh reality beneath.
The situation escalated with Ruby Franke’s partnership with Jodi Hildebrandt, a controversial therapist whose extreme parenting tactics formed the core of their “Moms of Truth” podcast and Instagram account. Hildebrandt’s influence grew, eventually leading her to move into the Franke home after the oldest child left for college.
The abuse came to light in 2023 when Chad’s younger brother escaped Hildebrandt’s home, seeking help from a neighbor. The boy was found severely malnourished, with duct tape binding his wrists and ankles – a horrifying testament to the cruelty he had endured. This desperate act of escape triggered the investigation that ultimately led to the arrests of both Franke and Hildebrandt.
Both women pleaded guilty to child abuse in December 2023 and were sentenced in February 2024 to four consecutive prison terms, ranging from 30 to 60 years. Now, Chad Franke is stepping forward, not to offer judgment, but to share his truth, one journal entry at a time, a testament to the long and arduous journey toward healing and reclaiming his own narrative.
