Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing

Bad Influence – Netflix Docuseries By Melissa Antoinette Garza

Before catching a brief segment on Inside Edition about the Netflix docuseries Bad Influence (2025), I had never heard of Piper Rockelle, Tiffany Smith, or the group known as “the squad.”

Though I watch a lot of YouTube, influencer culture has never appealed to me—especially when it involves kids. I find it to be repetitive, inauthentic, vacuous crap aimed at the lowest common denominator.

Sadly, Bad Influence exposes some of the darkest sides of this world. The series focuses on the troubling story of Piper Rockelle and the serious allegations against her mother, Tiffany Smith.

As a single parent, Tiffany began by entering Piper into disgusting, kiddie, beauty pageants at a very young age. Eventually, she started filming YouTube videos featuring Piper and her friends and cousins.

Rather than shielding her daughter from harm, the documentary alleges that Tiffany leaned into exploitation—reportedly encouraging her daughter to behave and dress in ways that catered to adult attention, even engaging with individuals whose interests were clearly inappropriate. Early on, Piper caught the attention of a middle-aged, perverted stalker. Rather than block him, Tiffany had Piper talk to him on the phone so that she could get gifts from him. She even went as far as to send Piper’s undergarments to these twisted freaks.

The abuse didn’t stop there. According to the series, Tiffany’s mistreatment extended to other children involved in the YouTube channel. She is accused of emotional, financial, and—in the most serious cases—sexual misconduct toward multiple young people in her orbit. The documentary includes firsthand accounts from former members of the squad, many of whom share painful stories.

What’s especially disturbing is how many of the parents allowed their children to remain in this environment. While they didn’t know the full extent of what was happening, Tiffany’s aggressive behavio...

I was on the hunt for a true crime doc to watch and came across this review for Bad Influencer and wow, I’m glad I did. The review totally nails why this documentary is worth your time. It dives deep into the case without dragging on or getting all over the place like some reviews. If you’re into real-life crime stories that are twisted and gripping, this one’s got all the details. Seriously, if you’re looking for something intense and eye-opening, I’d recommend checking out the review—it really helped me get a good feel for the documentary before hitting play https://entertainmentgem.com/2025/04/21/bad-influencer-the-violent-cost-of-kidfluencing-how-far-would-you-go-for-likes/