How Pinterest sent tragic Molly ‘ten depression pins that you might like’
SOCIAL media giant Pinterest sent Molly Russell emails headed ‘Ten depression pins you might like’ and ‘New ideas for you in depression’, an inquest was told yesterday.
Pinterest executive Jud Hoffman admitted the platform’s algorithm had not been good enough to stop the 14-year- old accessing selfharm and suicide material.
He said he ‘deeply regrets’ the harmful posts Molly viewed before her death in 2017, adding it was material he would ‘ not show to my children’. Asked whether the site was safer now, the head of community operations admitted similar material ‘ still likely exists’ on it.
Molly, from Harrow, north-west London, was found dead in her bedroom in November 2017. The
‘Algorithm was in its early stages’
inquest at North London Coroner’s Court is looking at whether algorithms used by social media to keep people hooked may have contributed to her death.
Her father Ian yesterday told the inquest that social media ‘helped kill’ his daughter and warned the danger was still there for other children.
Mr Russell – a campaigner for internet safety – questioned why the ‘ most advanced’ online giants still could ‘ not find a way to help prevent the content reaching vulnerable children’.
Hundreds of millions of people use Pinterest to create collages on virtual pinboards featuring photos, videos and gifs. Molly, who opened her Pinterest account in January 2016, had several boards relating to her passions such as Harry Potter and Australian boy band 5 Seconds Of Summer.
But in early 2017 she began posting and re-posting ‘ more distressing’ material about issues such as anxiety, depression, self-harm and suicide. The inquest was shown the last post Molly saved on the site just over a month before her death.
The graphic image showed an arm with several cuts up and down with text overlaid about putting a blade to the wrist. Just days before, Molly had saved a post with words to the effect that the poster did not want their parents to know they wanted to die.
In his witness statement, Mr Hoffman said the algorithm used to moderate content had been in its ‘early stages’ when Molly was using the platform. As a result, it struggled to work out whether it was recommending harmless content, like boy band pictures, or material potentially far more dangerous, such as a razorblade or a ligature. There was also no artificial intelligence in place that could read text in posts, such as the depression and suicidal subjects Molly regularly posted. This was only introduced in late 2019. Mr Hoffman said: ‘Content that violates our policies still likely exists on our platform. It [the platform] is safe but imperfect and we strive everyday to make it safer and safer.’
Asked whether he agreed that the content Molly was accessing had gradually worsened on the platform, he said: ‘I do and it’s important to note – and I deeply regret that she was able to access some of the content shown.’
He later added: ‘I am sorry it happened.’ The inquest also heard the final part of Mr Russell’s evidence in which he warned that the online world continued to remain dangerous for children.
He said: ‘I believe social media helped kill my daughter. I believe that too much of that content is still there and I believe there is a lack of transparency. Children shouldn’t be on a platform that presents a risk to their lives.’ He insisted: ‘If a 14-year- old can find a way of locating that content, I find it really hard to believe that some of the most advanced tech companies can’t find a way to help prevent the content reaching vulnerable children.
‘You can slow down the feed, you can use the algorithms to assess how these things can affect people. You can use artificial intelligence to fairly accurately predict the age of a user of your platform.’
The inquest continues.