The father of a teenage girl who died in Britain after viewing harmful content online on Monday criticized social media companies’ response to the report in a bid to prevent future tragedies.
London’s Ian Russell, father of 14-year-old Molly, described her reaction as “weak and unsurprising”, showing “business as usual”.
He added that regulation, such as the British government’s proposed Online Safety Bill, was the only way to end the “inertia” shown by social media sites towards security.
An inquest into her death heard that Molly had saved, shared or liked 16,300 posts on Instagram in the six months before her death, 2,100 of which related to depression, self-harm or suicide.
Coroner Andrew Walker, who led the inquest, then wrote to Meta, Pinterest, Twitter and Snapchat in September last year.
In a “Preventing Future Deaths” report sent to social media firms and the UK government, Walker called for a review of the algorithms used by sites to deliver content.
Russell expressed disappointment at their feedback and the fact that Instagram’s parent company Metta has not shown “any significant change in direction.”
“One might have hoped, given the level of detail presented to the coroner…
“It would have focused minds and forced the tech platforms to react more positively to secure their agenda,” he added.
“But it doesn’t seem like it, especially in the case of Meta.”
Strict action
In his inquest into Molly Russell’s death, Walker ruled that she died of an act of self-harm while exposed to the “negative effects of online content”.
He said it would not be “safe” to conclude that it was suicide.
Her death in November 2017 prompted her family to launch a campaign to highlight the dangers of social media.
The Online Safety Bill is scheduled to be debated in Parliament on Tuesday.
In its current form, it would require tech companies to remove illegal content from their platforms, with a particular emphasis on protecting children from viewing harmful content. It will also impose heavy fines on sites that break the rules.
However, dozens of MPs with the ruling Conservatives have put their name to an amendment calling for tougher action.
Rebel MPs want owners of social media platforms to face jail if they fail to protect children from viewing harmful content.
After an inquest into his daughter’s death, Russell said “it’s time to change the toxic corporate culture at the heart of the world’s largest social media platform.
Russell said a senior Metta executive had said the content the platform’s algorithms had delivered to his daughter was safe.
“Had this mad trail of life-sucking material been preserved, my daughter Molly would probably still be alive – and instead of a bereaved family of four, there would be five of us living lives full of purpose and promise. Will look forward to it. Onward to our beloved Molly,” he added.
