Redeem now - Hila Klein spoke to Insider about her career and goals as a public figure and a parent.
- She and husband Ethan Klein have decided to keep their children largely out of the public eye.
- She said she wants to protect them for as long as possible from the darkness of the internet.
Hila Klein dominates many corners of the internet — she's the cohost of a famous podcast, the CEO of a streetwear brand, and a style influencer.
But the privacy of her kids in all this is something that's not up for debate.
Klein and her husband Ethan — the other half of the H3 Podcast they have been running since 2017 — are "obsessed" with their boys, Theodore (4) and Bruce (18 months), and have another baby on the way.
"Little children are just so beautiful," she said, adding that it's the children and family time that keep her grounded. "They're a sponge and they just want to learn from you, and it's a beautiful experience."
But while she wishes she could share them with the world, Klein told Insider she and Ethan made the decision to keep them largely off the internet. They said they know better than anyone how much of a "dark place" it can be.
"It's also hard for me not to share because they're so cute," Klein said. "I feel like I want to show them, but it's a choice that we made. We want to keep it private for them, and I think it's the responsible choice."
Klein has been a public person since H3 took off and became a staple of YouTube. The podcast's channel has 2.9 million subscribers and is known for covering pop culture news, as well as hosting debates with and about the internet's biggest stars.
Klein is used to negative comments, and knows it's just part of being in the limelight. But the relentlessness of it still gets to her sometimes, she said, when people "dissect every little thing that you do."
"I personally feel as an adult, as a grownup, being online is so hard," Klein said. "To think about a child going through that to me is just like, I would never want to do that to them."
Klein said she also questions whether children can even consent to their lives being shared on social media. It's the "Wild West," she said, with many family vlogging channels having built their fame and fortunes through their children.
Since the genesis of the momfluencer in the early 2000s, parenting YouTubers have made their own rules of what can be made public. Some children grew up with millions of eyes watching their most vulnerable moments.
As public opinion shifted towards protecting children from the spotlight, some family channels have found themselves in murky water. Stories such as that of Ruby Franke — a Mormon momfluencer who was recently arrested and charged with child abuse — are also a cautionary tale, where a once-loved family imploded in front of the world.
"It's really hard to balance because Theodore loves watching YouTube and he loves watching other kids on YouTube," Klein said. "It's a very weird conversation. Should we even watch those channels? Because I don't know if I even technically support family channels."
Klein said Theodore is begging to be on the podcast regardless of their rules. Maybe one day, she said, but right now "he doesn't fully understand the consequences."
"Once they're more grown up, if they really still want that, once they have a better understanding of the negative sides that comes with that, then I would have no problem at all," she said.
"I just know that we are the grown-ups in the situation and we are the ones with the responsibility to make the right choice for them."
View this post on InstagramFor now, the podcast remains an activity solely for the parents, who built their following slow and steady, Klein said. She said she and Ethan often talk about how fortunate they were that their success didn't all come at once.
"When it happens fast, you can kind of lose yourself really quickly in it and not know how to handle things properly or how to react when something happens and you say the wrong thing," Klein said. "You see people go up really fast and go down really fast."
The couple cover a lot of these stories, where influencers burn out, or come under fire for shoddy working conditions and dangerous behavior. They were the first to interview Seth Francois, for example, whose report of sexual assault by a member of David Dobrik's Vlog Squad signaled the start of the group's downfall.
Klein and Ethan have different approaches — she is more discerning and chooses her moments to speak her opinion carefully, whereas her husband is more of an open book, never afraid to voice his thoughts. That dynamic is something that's always worked for them from the beginning, Klein said.
She said when she was growing up, she was the quietest person in the room, and would sometimes be afraid to even be seen or heard. She said her friends say she's unrecognizable now compared to her 20s.
"I was such a shy person that I would barely speak in a group setting or open up at all," she said. "When I met Ethan, he really pushed me in ways that were so healthy for my personal growth. He made me more open and confident and he would always just compliment me or push me to do whatever it was that I was inspired to do."
In return, she helps him pick his battles (even if it doesn't always work).
"I get him to be a little bit more responsible maybe, or think twice," she said. "It doesn't always help. He's going to do what he is going to do. But I do think we both influence each other."
Her kids have had a positive impact on her too, she said. They make her feel more confident and push her to "just care less and explore more." At age 35, she feels she's just now finding herself.
"It's kind of cool I guess for the younger people to know that you don't have to figure yourself out in your twenties," she said. "You have a lot of time still."
With her brand Teddy Fresh, dedication to the podcast, and a growing following on Instagram of young people who see her as a mentor, Klein has her hands full. But she doesn't see H3 ending any time soon.
Klein said she and Ethan have talked about one day retiring, but they both think they'd get bored. The podcast and company, she said, are a needed outlet for all the energy they have.
"I don't think we'll want to retire, to be honest with you," she said said. "I think that we might do it forever."
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