Concerns over effects of social media on young

Hold firms to account, psychiatrists say

SOCIAL MEDIA giants should be forced to hand over data and pay towards research into their potential harms, a new report backed by the father of Molly Russell has argued.

Concerns about the impact of social media on vulnerable people come amid suicides such as that in 2017 of 14-year-old Molly, of Harrow, London, who was found to have viewed harmful content online.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists said a proposed two per cent levy on the UK revenues of major tech companies does not go far enough.

Instead, it wants the so-called “turnover tax” to apply to international turnover and for some of the money from it to be used for mental health research.

Molly’s father, Ian Russell, spoke of the urgent need for greater action in an emotional foreword to the report, in which he described the “wrecking ball of suicide” that “smashed brutally” into his family, blaming “pushy algorithms”.

He said of her social media accounts: “Among the usual schoolfriends, pop groups and celebrities followed by 14-year-olds, we found bleak depressive material, graphic self-harm content and suicide-encouraging memes.

“I have no doubt that social media helped kill my daughter.”

Mr Russell also detailed one of Molly’s final notes which described

how she felt “with heartbreaking clarity”.

“I’m the weird sister, quiet daughter, depressed friend, lonely classmate,” she wrote. “I’m nothing, I’m worthless, I’m numb, I’m lost, I’m weak, I’m gone. I’m

Ian Russell, father of Molly, who took her own life after viewing harmful content online. sorry. I’ll see you in a little while. I love you all so much. Have a happy life. Stay strong xxx.”

While welcoming the Government’s White Paper on online harms, the college’s report calls for an independent regulator with powers to be able to establish a protocol for the sharing of data from social media companies with universities for research, such as behavioural data.

It also points to evidence that increased social media use may result in poorer mental health, particularly in girls.

Dr Bernadka Dubicka, chairwoman of the child and adolescent faculty at the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the report’s co-author, said: “As a psychiatrist working on the front line, I am seeing more and more children self-harming and attempting suicide as a result of their social media use and online discussions.

“We will never understand the risks and benefits of social media use unless the likes of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram share their data with researchers.

“Their research will help shine a light on how young people are interacting with social media, not just how much time they spend online. Self-regulation is not working. It is time for Government to step up and take decisive action to hold social media companies to account for escalating harmful content to vulnerable children and young people.”

Tom Madders, of the YoungMinds charity, said it was crucial that tech companies take action to minimise the risks.

I’ve no doubt that social media helped kill my daughter.