‘SOCIAL MEDIA IS MAKING OUR CHILDREN MENTALLY ILL’
Shocking claim by GPs amid calls for regulator
FAMILY doctors are seeing a huge surge in the number of children presenting with depression and anxiety caused by social media.
The shocking anecdotal evidence from a number of GPs comes as a leading psychiatrist calls for a new social media regulator ‘with teeth’.
Former Irish Medical Organisation boss Dr Matthew Sadlier also thinks smartphones should be banned for under-16s, as he warned social media can be ‘very dark and very dangerous’.
One rural GP last night said she sees one child a month suffering from anxiety related directly to cyberbullying. Other GPs, speaking to the Irish Daily Mail at
FACEBOOK’S move to block fake political ads from its site has been welcomed but now Twitter and other social media sites should follow suit, a TD has said.
Fianna Fáil’s technology spokesman James Lawless said new legislation is needed to stop false political information online and he said self-regulation is clearly not working.
Those working with Facebook have said these new controls on the social media site are being introduced to ensure authenticity and full transparency among online advertisers, publishers and users.
It follows a row about Russia’s role in manipulating the American public through social media during the 2016 presidential election. It also follows revelations that firms such as Cambridge Analytica harvested data on voters through quizzes on Facebook.
Mr Lawless said it is clear that more people are sourcing their daily news online, while social media is playing a significant role in steering political debate.
‘At a time when we are beginning to gain a greater insight into the details regarding the improper use of Facebook advertisements in politics worldwide, it is crucial that controls such as the ones announced this weekend are implemented across platforms,’ he said.
‘As there are many other networks such as Twitter, Instagram and Google Ads exempt from any governance of political adverts, we cannot rely on the notion of self-regulation given the abuses and existing trust issues related to recent scandals.’
The Kildare North TD proposed a Bill last December to force all online political advertising to state the publisher and sponsor of the ad, as well as the target market it’s aimed at. The proposed legislation was eventually rejected. ‘Facebook’s latest controls are a step towards eliminating fake news online but fuzzy lines of online political advertising in Ireland must be made clearer,’ Mr Lawless said, urging the Government to impose controls on online political advertising.
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