Durban – A British coroner has ruled that social media is to blame after 14-year-old Molly Russell took her own life in 2017.
The inquest has renewed pressure for government to institute an Online Safety Bill.
“She died from an act of self-harm while suffering from depression and the negative effects of online content,” said London coroner Andrew Walker.
Euro News reported that a coroner could write a report after an inquest if there was a possibility or risk of similar reasons for future deaths.
He has since written to Facebook and Instagram’s parent company, Meta, as well as other social media sites, recommending they have separate platforms for children and adults.
Following her death, Molly’s father Ian Russell, spent hours reading through her social media searching for answers after she died.
He eventually found an email from Pinterest with pins (posts) on depression. Russell said he was shocked by the content he found.
The various social media companies have until December 8 to respond with details on how they will address the points raised.
Euro News reported that an attorney and founder of the Social Media Victims Law Centre said Molly’s case was incredibly important.
Matthew P Bergman said Molly’s death was not an accident or a coincidence. He said this would be a clarion call to the world.
Giving evidence during Molly’s inquest in September, Meta’s Elizabeth Lagone said it was safe for people to express themselves. She conceded that two of the posts shown in court would have gone against Instagram’s policy. She further offered an apology to the family.
According to Pinterest’s Judson Hoffman, the platform was not safe when Molly had used it.
Meanwhile, a 11-year-old US girl suffered from severe sleep deprivation and depression and eventually committed suicide after she became addicted to Snapchat and Instagram.
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