I'm Ethan Vance, an insurance agent and father of two in Richmond, Virginia. Last October, my 14-year-old son Eli was doing his Earth science homework when he said something that stopped me cold: "Dad, did you know NASA fakes all their space missions?" My wife and I looked at each other. At first, I thought he was joking, but he was dead serious. "Where'd you hear that?" I asked. "YouTube," he said, like it was common knowledge. That night, I couldn't shake the feeling that something had shifted in my son—and I had no idea when.
Meet the Vance Family Story
Bringing my son back from the edge of conspiracy rabbit holes
Our Family's Struggle
Challenge
Over the next few days, I started noticing more red flags. Eli argued with his science teacher about the moon landing. He told his younger sister that "the government lies about everything." When I asked him to explain, he'd rattle off phrases like "hidden evidence" and "what they don't want you to know." I tried reasoning with him—"Eli, scientists spend their whole lives studying this stuff"—but he'd just shake his head and say, "You don't get it, Dad. You're believing what they tell you to believe." It felt like I was losing him to some invisible force. My wife and I aren't scientists. We didn't know how to argue against these claims because we didn't even know where they were coming from. One Sunday, I asked to see his phone. He handed it over reluctantly, and I scrolled through his YouTube history. Video after video: "NASA's Biggest Lies," "Flat Earth PROOF," "The Truth They're Hiding." Each thumbnail more dramatic than the last. Most were uploaded at 11 p.m. or later. That's when I realized: Eli wasn't just curious. He was being reprogrammed.
Solution
I downloaded FamiSafe that same night and synced it to Eli's phone. The activity reports confirmed what I feared—he was watching 2 to 3 hours of conspiracy content every night, mostly after we went to bed. Instead of banning everything, I decided to meet him where he was. The next evening, I sat down with him and said, "Let's watch one of these videos together." We watched a 20-minute video claiming the Earth was flat. Afterward, I asked him questions: "Who made this? What's their evidence? Are there any scientists in this video?" He didn't have answers. That opened the door. I used FamiSafe to block the most extreme channels and set video time limits after 9 p.m. I also signed Eli up for his school's science club, where he met a teacher who patiently walked him through the scientific method. I encouraged him to ask questions, but to demand evidence. Slowly, the conspiracy talk faded. Last month, his science teacher emailed me: "Eli's critical thinking has really improved. He's questioning everything now—in a good way." When I asked him about NASA recently, he rolled his eyes and said, "Dad, I know. I was being dumb." That was the best thing I'd heard in months.
The Vance Family Today
76
%
Conspiracy content consumption reduced
64
%
Late-night misinformation exposure reduced
69
%
Anti-science rhetoric reduced
What Parents Say
FamiSafe didn't just show me what Eli was watching—it gave me a
way to guide him back to critical thinking without shutting him down completely.
— Ethan V.
Father, U.S.
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