In this exploratory study, we analyzed how the intersections between YouTube, Roblox, and hashtags facilitate circulation of sexual content in digital participatory cultures. Guided by literature on digital childhood, sexualization in video games, and children's well-being as well as theories of networked publics and platform affordances, we used Unified Discourse Analysis to understand how sexuality is narratively represented in popular Roblox YouTube sus videos. We conducted an exploratory critical textual analysis of the characters, narratives, visual syntax, and audio of the ten most popular videos. The preliminary findings suggest that these videos appear to be designed to circulate among, or appeal to, child audiences. We discuss the implications within the participatory media ecology of children's media, exploring how platforms like YouTube and Roblox commodify content by making use of children's curiosity about sexuality to shape their social and sexual experiences through the circulation of hashtags such as sus.
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Garcia et al. (2026) studied this question.
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