Demi Lovato is highlighting the need for stronger protections for emerging child performers in her new Hulu documentary "Child Star."
Lovato spoke with CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister about the doc in an interview that aired on Wednesday's episode of "The Lead," saying she hopes to raise awareness "for legislation so that minors (in the public eye) are protected and compensated."
"It's kind of the wild, wild west in the digital age," Lovato added, referring to how today's ever-changing media landscape is different from when she was a child star.
The singer went on to say that bringing these issues to Capitol Hill one day is the goal. "That would be incredible," she said.
"Child Star" is Lovato's directorial debut and "explores the highs and lows of growing up in the spotlight through the lens of some of the world's most well-known former child stars," according to an official synopsis. The documentary is produced by Lovato, Michael D. Ratner, Scott Ratner, Miranda Sherman and Kfir Goldberg for OBB Pictures.
Drew Barrymore, Christina Ricci and Raven-Symoné are among the former child actors that Lovato sits down with in the film to chronicle how they persevered through adversity growing up in the spotlight.
"Fame for a child creates instability," Lovato shared, "and when you pair that with instability that was already there, it's kind of like a recipe for disaster."
Lovato got her start as an actor around age 10 on "Barney & Friends" in the early aughts, and went on to have a successful career as a Disney Channel star and pop singer.
The "Cool for the Summer" singer has been open about her personal struggles with addiction, mental health and disordered eating.
Regarding how far she's come, Lovato told CNN she is "very proud" of herself.
"I try to live the philosophy of not having regrets," she added. "When I look back at how resilient I've been over some of the darkest moments of my life, I am very, very proud of myself that I've dug myself out of the rubble and (am) living the life that I am today."
"Child Star" is available now to stream on Hulu.
Shohei Ohtani became the first major league player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a season, with the Los Angeles Dodgers star going deep twice to reach the half-century mark and swiping two bags to get to 51 against the Miami Marlins on Thursday.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police has lost 205 firearms since 2020, including more than 120 handguns and at least five fully automatic weapons like machine-guns.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tapped Treasury Board President Anita Anand to take on additional duties as Canada's minister of transport on Thursday.
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Shamattawa RCMP are searching for a missing six-year-old boy who hasn’t been seen since Wednesday morning.
The University of Ottawa's special advisor on antisemitism says he has resigned following posts he made on social media celebrating the pager explosions in Lebanon this week.
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is calling on the Bloc Quebecois to topple the Trudeau government next Wednesday and trigger a federal election.
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The University of Ottawa's special advisor on antisemitism says he has resigned following posts he made on social media celebrating the pager explosions in Lebanon this week.
The mayor of Fort Saskatchewan apologized on Thursday for comments she made earlier this week about killing feral cats.
A federal law enforcement agency confirmed it's opened an investigation into Robert F. Kennedy Jr. after he allegedly cut off the head of a dead whale and took it home two decades ago.
A judge in a rural Kentucky county was shot and killed at the local courthouse on Thursday, Gov. Andy Beshear announced.
A 22-year-old woman who became an abortion rights advocate after she was raped by her stepfather as a child tells her story in a new campaign ad for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
South Korea’s government, western countries and adoption agencies worked in tandem to supply some 200,000 Korean children to parents overseas, despite years of evidence they were being procured through questionable or downright unscrupulous means, an investigation led by The Associated Press found.
Israeli security services said on Thursday they had arrested an Israeli citizen on suspicion of involvement in an Iranian-backed assassination plot targeting prominent people including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Two emergency medical technicians stood around for minutes, providing no medical aid to a seriously injured Tyre Nichols who was slumped on the ground after being kicked and punched by five Memphis police officers, according to video shown Thursday at the trial of three of the officers charged in the fatal beating.
The head of Via Rail says a train delay over the Labour Day long weekend was an isolated incident.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh got into a heated exchange in the House of Commons on Thursday, just minutes after Singh announced his party would not be supporting the Conservatives’ first non-confidence motion against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tapped Treasury Board President Anita Anand to take on additional duties as Canada's minister of transport on Thursday.
Ontario’s Minister of Sport, Neil Lumsden, will donate his brain to research.
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Lebanese authorities on Thursday banned walkie-talkies and pagers from being taken on flights from Beirut airport, the National News Agency reported, after thousands of such devices exploded during a deadly attack on Hezbollah this week.
NASA scientists have successfully replicated spider-like shapes found on the surface of Mars in a laboratory setting for the first time.
Viewers of Jeopardy got a chance to test their knowledge of trivia about B.C.'s biggest city Wednesday night.
British actress Florence Pugh has revealed that shaving her head for her latest movie role was a 'really bizarre' experience that sent her body 'into a bit of trauma.'
Demi Lovato is highlighting the need for stronger protections for emerging child performers in her new Hulu documentary "Child Star."
Maple Leaf Foods asserted its innocence in an alleged bread price-fixing scheme ahead of a hearing to determine whether it will be added to an ongoing class-action lawsuit.
Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
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Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette returned to the 10-day injured list Thursday due to a right middle finger fracture.
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The plant was expected to produce batteries for a million electric vehicles a year. Once up and running, it was supposed to create hundreds of permanent jobs in a small southeastern Ontario municipality. But two years later, spending on the construction of the Umicore plant has been delayed in what the company calls a "significant worsening of the EV market context."
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We've produced a special webcast edition of CTV News Calgary for Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024.
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The University of Ottawa's special advisor on antisemitism says he has resigned following posts he made on social media celebrating the pager explosions in Lebanon this week.
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Thomas Hamp says he believed secret police were out to kidnap, torture, and kill him when he fatally stabbed his girlfriend Emily Sanche in February of 2022.
A case involving stolen funds from a Saskatchewan business being used to purchase cryptocurrency will be heading back to the courts, thanks to a new decision by Saskatchewan's Court of Appeal.
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An agreement between First Nations and the British Columbia government will see thousands of homes made available in Vancouver at 40-per-cent below cost.
The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.
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A Lethbridge couple got a good reminder as to why you should keep your vehicle doors locked at all times.
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North Bay Police Service says one person has died following an industrial accident at the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission Rail Yard on Tuesday.
Three northern Ontario residents are charged with drug trafficking after the vehicle they were in got stuck along a bush road off Highway 17 on Monday.
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Newfoundland and Labrador's chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
A 16-year-old biennial event aimed at fostering business in the country's eastern Arctic and northern regions has been cancelled indefinitely as a dispute unfolds between Inuit in Canada and a Labrador group claiming to share their heritage.
Jim Lester’s farm hopped on the cow-cuddling trend in early August, and his time slots have been pretty well sold out ever since.
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