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Carson Daly and his wife, Siri, share four children, and with ages spread from 18 to 6, they’re experiencing all stages of parenthood, including the more challenging early teenage years. Now that his daughter, Etta, is 13, Carson says they “never speak” anymore, and while a statement like that does sound a bit controversial, you might want to hear the celebrity dad out on this one.
Carson opened up about his evolving relationship with his daughter.
While chatting with Jenna Bush Hager on Monday’s edition of Today With Jenna & Sheinelle, Carson brought up the challenges he’s had talking to Etta now that she’s officially a full fledged teenager.
“I have a 13-year-old, Etta, who is doing great, who I never speak with. Do you speak 13-year-old? ’Cause I don’t,” he said.
So instead of trying to sit down and have a conversation with Etta face to face, he decided to make a different approach. “You ever hear that phrase, ‘You’ve got to meet kids where they are?’ You hear it in business a lot, right? They want to advertise, get in front of them,” he said. “I’ve taken a page out of that and six months ago, I did join Snapchat,” he continued. “I have literally communicated with my daughter, in particular, more via Snapchat than I have in real life.”
His approach actually worked.
Since Etta was more comfortable talking to her dad on Snapchat, they’ve been having all kinds of conversations.
“I can say, ‘Are you okay?’ And then I’ll put some stupid emoji,” he said. “And she’ll write back, like, ‘LOL,’ and all these little things are flying all over the screen. As silly as it is, I am connected a little bit.”
Anyone who’s been stonewalled by their kid after asking how their day was can probably relate to Carson’s story. Keeping the lines of communication open is so important, especially during the teenage years, so if he found something unconventional that worked, all the more power to him.
Apparently, Etta wasn’t too happy her dad shared this story on TV.
Following Monday’s episode, a source told entertainment journalist Rob Shuter that Etta’s reaction to the clip is making Carson regret sharing the story.
“Etta was absolutely mortified,” a source said. “Her classmates saw the headlines, kids were bringing it up at school, and Carson suddenly realized how overwhelming this became for her.”
Now, he may dial things back. “Carson thought he was telling a harmless parenting story,” a different source said. “But family felt like her private life had suddenly become public entertainment. He’s learned that once something goes viral, you can’t pull it back, and protecting his daughter matters more than getting a laugh.”
If this report is true, good for Carson for listening to his daughter and her feelings. Now that he’s found a way to get her to open up, it would be a shame if he lost all the progress he’s made.
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