Collin Kartchner

Collin Kartchner, the US youth advocate who campaigned to keep children away from social media, has died, aged 40.

Kartchner’s wife, Elizabeth, confirmed his death on Wednesday. Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes said in a statement that he was devastated by the news of Kartchner’s death. “Collin was a great partner and warrior in the fight to protect our children and youth,” he said.

“His energy, enthusiasm, and incredible ability to positively impact young minds will be missed tremendously.”

Kartchner began making videos on Instagram satirizing the internet’s obsession with perfection. But in early 2018 he launched a campaign against cyberbullying following the death of a family friend’s daughter from a drug overdose. The girl’s mother said she had been bullied on social media about her appearance.

Kartchner used Instagram to promote a healthier self-image, a campaign that quickly became a nationwide movement under the hashtag #SavetheKids.

According to Save the Kids website, the mission of the movement is “to help people both young and old to rise above the negative effects of social media and screen addiction, while showing the world how to use it for doing good.”

Kartchner also launched National Delete Snapchat Day, saying that children “are growing up in a world that is muckier and scarier than any of us could ever imagine, and they need to be seen, to be heard and to be loved.” Kartchner was born on July 29, 1980, in Arizona, where he lived until his family moved to Utah when he was in high school.

According to a spokeswoman for Save the Kids, he and Elizabeth were high school sweethearts. Kartchner is survived by his wife and their four children, Avery, Quincey, Lola and Myles.