published
death in the UK Molly Russell (14) became a “victim of social media” – Prince William worried
14-year-old Molly Russell took her own life almost five years ago – now a London court is dealing with the social media content that the girl had consumed before her death. Even Prince William calls for more safety for children on the Internet.
Hours later, Prince William commented on Twitter: “Online safety for our children and young people must be a basic requirement,” wrote the royal.
VIA REUTERS
Examination of Molly’s cell phone in the six months leading up to her death show, according to “The Guardian» that of the 16,300 pieces of content that the student saved, liked or shared on Instagram, 2,100 related to suicide, self-harm and depression.
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Molly Russell, 14, from London, took her own life in November 2017.
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The parents accuse social media platforms of being responsible for the student’s death.
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Prince William also refers to the case.
Rarely – or actually almost never – do the British royals comment on ongoing court proceedings. But the issue of mental health affects him – so Prince William made an exception this time. “No parent should ever have to go through what Ian Russell and his family went through,” he wrote on Twitter on Friday night. He was responding to the outcome of a hearing in a London court where a coroner concluded that Molly Russell “died from an act of self-harm while suffering from depression and the negative effects of online content.”
The death of the then 14-year-old in 2017 made headlines in the UK. Ian Russell and his wife Molly, from Harrow, north-west London, discovered their daughter’s lifeless body on the morning of November 21. The family had spent a peaceful evening that evening, Molly had gone to bed. But just hours after the Russells shared an episode of “I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here!” looked, Molly went to her room and took her own life. Today the parents know that their daughter was “immersed in the darkest of all worlds” in the weeks before her death.
Father Ian spoke in court of a “whirlwind of despair on social media”, of a “desolate world that I don’t recognize, a ghetto of the online world that you can’t get out of once you get in, because the algorithm recommends more and more content. You can’t escape him.”
Watched 2,100 self-harm videos
The father does not exaggerate. Examination of Molly’s cell phone in the six months leading up to her death show, according to “The Guardian» that of the 16,300 pieces of content that the student saved, liked or shared on Instagram, 2,100 related to suicide, self-harm and depression. In total, Molly watched 138 videos with explicit suicide and self-harm content, which even “deprived the court-appointed child psychiatrist of sleep for weeks”.
On the night of her death, she last accessed Instagram with her iPhone and saved an image that included a depression-themed slogan. For the Russell family lawyer, Oliver Sanders, it is clear: “It was Instagram that literally gave Molly the idea.”
Meta describes the videos as “safe”
For the hearings, the British coroner Elizabeth Lagone flew in from the United States to testify as a witness. Lagone is Head of Health and Wellbeing at Meta. After viewing the sensitive posts and videos, the woman defended some of the posts by calling them “safe” for children. The content attempted to raise awareness of a user’s mental state and share their feelings, said the Meta staffer, who was accompanied by several bodyguards, as “BBC» reported.
Attorney Sanders challenged Lagone’s view in court. He questioned whether a 14-year-old could be expected to tell the difference between a post that draws attention to self-harm and one that encourages it.
After the hearings concluded, Ian Russell said he hoped the case was an “important step towards much-needed change”. It is important “that we try to do everything necessary to prevent such a young life from being lost again.”
Do you or hat someone you know suicidal thoughts? Or did you lose someone to suicide?
For Youth, Advice for children and young people, Tel. 147
Offered Hand, worry hotline, Tel. 143
Pro Healthy MindTel. 0848 800 858
Seelsorge.netAngeoffered the Reformed and Catholic Churchn
Muslim pastoral careTel. 043 205 21 29
Jewish welfare, info@vsjf.ch
Relatives.chadvice and contact points
Do you or hat someone you know depressed?
Pro Healthy MindThel. 0848 800 858
Children’s soul SwitzerlandCounseling for mentally stressed parents and their relatives
Association Postpartum DepressionTel. 044 720 25 55
Relatives.chadvice and contact points
WASHregional associations for relatives
For Youth, Advice for children and young people, Tel. 147
Offered Hand, worry hotline, Tel. 143
Anxiety and Panic Help SwitzerlandTel. 0848 801 109