How Myka Stauffer Used Dreft Laundry Detergent to 'Bond' with Her Adopted Son — and Then Got Paid for It (2024)

• Vox Media Studios highlighted some of Myka Stauffer's most controversial family vlogs, including her use of her children in sponsored videos
• In one ad for Deft laundry detergent, the YouTuber referenced her son Huxley's adoption from China at 2½ years old. She and her husband James later sought adoption dissolution and re-homed Huxley, who was diagnosed with autism
• Vox Media's three-part docuseries An Update on Our Family looked back at Myka's many sponsored videos and the occasions when she detailed her YouTube-based income

Ex-YouTuber Myka Stauffer is coming back under fire for using her son Huxley's international adoption to promote one of her sponsors.

Vox Media Studios' three-part docuseries An Update on Our Family revisits some of the influencer's most controversial moments online, including her Dreft laundry detergent advertisem*nt featuring her adopted child with special needs.

Episode 2 of the docuseries features a snippet from Myka's since-deleted video posted before she and her husband, James Stauffer, sought to re-home Huxley, who now goes by another name given by his new family. (After their adoption dissolution in 2020, Myka wiped all of her YouTube videos off of the platform.)

"In order to bond with Huxley, I decided to use Dreft baby detergent. Dreft baby detergent has this scent just like a newborn’s," the Ohio mom spoke over footage of her playing with the toddler in the video titled, "5 Things I Didn’t EXPECT About Our China ADOPTION!"

She continued, "So when I’m cuddling a 3-year-old baby boy, I can still feel like I’m snuggling that brand new baby, and I get that baby scent that I never got from my son."

The Stauffers, as well as Huxley's new family, have not responded to PEOPLE's requests for comment.

Participants in the docuseries criticized the sponsored video as an example of Myka profiting off her child, whom she later determined was not a fit for her family. Adoption counselor and adoptee Cameron Lee Small shared his perspective in episode 2, titled "Damn Good Mom."

"The idea of adopting situated in a little story like that, to sell laundry detergent, it seems to objectify the adoptee," Small said during his interview for the series, which is based on aNew YorkMagazine feature. "I’m not saying that is anyone’s intention to objectify these children. It could come across that way."

Before Myka and James adopted Huxley, the vlogger spoke openly about her YouTube-based income. In one video featured in the docuseries, she detailed her cash flow on camera for fans and followers to hear, sharing how her videos became more and more profitable as she grew her family.

"At first my channel got really low views, and then I got pregnant and my subscribers grew substantially," she said in another since-deleted video from 2016. "After that, we started seeing like $500 paychecks, and we were like ‘Dang! This is kind of nice.’ ”

She advised her followers interested in a career online to stick with the slow-building process.

“If you want to start YouTube, or if you want to be a stay at home mom and you’re like ‘I would love to make content,' just remember at first it’s really slow and it takes a good while to get up there," she said. "But if you can get your subscribers and get your views up there in a quick amount of time then you will start making money at a really healthy rate.”

In episode 1, An Update on Our Family spotlights Myka's many sponsorship deals beyond Dreft. Prior to adopting Huxley, she was already partnered with major companies like Fabletics, Dannon Yogurt. Fit and Fresh, Endust and teeth whitening brand White with Style, among others.

After the Stauffers revealed their decision to seek out adoption dissolution, their lawyers spoke to PEOPLE at the time about their ultimate hope to "provide Huxley with the best possible treatment and care."

"We are privy to this case and given the facts at hand, we feel this was the best decision for Huxley," Myka and James' lawyers, Thomas Taneff and Taylor Sayers, told PEOPLE in an exclusive statement issued in May 2020. "In coming to know our clients we know they are a loving family and are very caring parents that would do anything for their children."

"Since his adoption, they consulted with multiple professionals in the healthcare and educational arenas in order to provide Huxley with the best possible treatment and care," Taneff and Sayers continued. "Over time, the team of medical professionals advised our clients it might be best for Huxley to be placed with another family."

The vloggers' legal team noted that the Stauffers followed the advice of medical professionals, which, the lawyers clarified, "did NOT include any considerations for placement in the foster system, but rather to hand-select a family who is equipped to handle Huxley’s needs."