Don’t wait for an online safety bill… protect kids now from sites that ‘helped kill’ Molly Russell
THERE is no doubt that being a parent has become a whole lot more difficult with the advent of social media.
I used to worry about my son smoking behind the bike shed or my daughter hiking up her school skirt.
But the arrival of social media has changed everything for parents, and it is almost impossible to know how to protect our children.
Endless reports prove social media can negatively affect teens — whether it’s distracting them, disrupting their sleep or exposing them to bullying, peer pressure, rumour-spreading and unrealistic views of other people’s lives and bodies.
All of which leads to low self-esteem and anxiety.
Most parents I know are wondering if there is any way to use such sites safely, especially after details of Molly Russell’s long-delayed inquest emerged this week.
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Before the 14-year-old killed herself in 2017, she had viewed multiple online posts linked to depression, self-harm and suicide.
Her father, Ian Russell, who has become a valiant campaigner for internet safety, is in no doubt about the role those played in her ending her life.
He has previously accused Instagram — owned by Meta, formerly known as Facebook — of “helping to kill” his daughter, six days before her 15th birthday.
This week, at her inquest, Ian — who paid tribute to his “positive, happy, bright” daughter — described how he discovered “shocking” online content accessed by Molly before she killed herself, including on Instagram and Pinterest.
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Molly interacted with images of self-harm, razor blades and much worse. All terrible, and totally unnecessary.
The more Molly “liked” social media posts that normalised, glamorised and even glorified dangerous behaviours, the more she would be automatically fed such posts through the algorithms of the platforms, her father told the hearing.
This is shocking and utterly irresponsible.
Molly’s needless death is unbearable and deplorable. Equally as shocking and awful is the fact that Molly’s inquest should have gone to court in 2019-20.
But while Pinterest co-operated fully, Meta made various lame excuses about why it couldn’t provide information when it was asked, which contributed to a scandalous three-year delay.
Meta executives also tried to give evidence remotely, which Oliver Sanders QC, barrister for the Russell family, rightly said was “disrespectful to the family and disrespectful to the court”.
A new era of accountability
It feels indicative of the disrespect and contempt social media companies seem to have for their users.
Still not enough has been done by social media firms to prevent young users accessing harmful content.
There is hope, in the form of the Online Safety Bill, which was introduced in Parliament in March and will hopefully become law.
It will usher in a new era of accountability online.
It should protect children from harmful content, such as pornography, and limit exposure to illegal content.
It will require social media platforms, search engines and other apps and websites allowing people to share content, to protect children and tackle illegal activity.
The Government is making changes to the bill, which include ensuring companies tackle the most harmful content and criminal activity with greater urgency.
Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan has assured us the new regime at No10 will not change any of the proposed measures aimed at protecting children, which is clearly the most important thing.
Since we cannot rely on social media companies to moderate their output, what can parents do in the meantime?
They need to educate themselves about social media, the internet, parental controls, virtual private networks and the dark web. They also need to find out what their children are doing online.
It is impossible for most of us to put ourselves in the shoes of Molly’s parents.
After losing their daughter in this way and feeling certain social media had a significant part to play, waiting so long for the inquest must have been agony.
They have lost their beloved daughter and Ian is heroic in campaigning for changes to save other people’s children.
We owe him a debt of thanks for that.
King’s grand start
IT has to be one of the longest apprenticeships in history. At 73, Charles is finally King.
But as soon as he has the job he’s waited all his life to do, he’s being cast as the “nation’s grandfather”.
He’s gone from being a princely son and heir to grandpa overnight.
Life comes at you fast.
I can’t imagine he is keen on the new tag, which has such a benign and passive undertone.
On the other hand, he is now at the age most of us hope to be slowing down and enjoying life as a grandparent.
That said, he has walked miles dressed in heavy uniform for the Queen’s funeral, so he’s clearly in fairly good shape.
Charles has spoken about knowing the time has come for him to keep his views and opinions more to himself.
He is right to aim for quiet authority.
As far as I am concerned, so far so good. The Queen is impossible to replace, so my advice would be not to try too hard.
What I think we all hope for from our King is a calm sense of purpose, values and integrity.
The Queen added so much value to our nation and made the country feel great. Put simply, we trusted her.
There were no interviews, no airing of dirty laundry.
We believed, rightly, that whatever she did, she had the country’s best interests at heart.
If King Charles can achieve the same thing, he has the best chance of truly uniting the nation.
Sign to smile
THE new Princess of Wales said this week she believed the Queen was “looking down on us” when five rainbows appeared in the sky over Balmoral.
That same thought did cross my mind when there was a beautiful double rainbow in London around the time the Queen’s death was announced.
It’s hard not to give in to temptation to see it as a message from her to look on the bright side – and know that we will all smile again.
Harry row is so sad
WE are told that Prince Harry is furious with his father for banning Meghan from joining the grieving Royal Family on the day the Queen passed away.
The Duke of Sussex reportedly wanted his wife to join him as a royal party travelled to Balmoral to say their final goodbyes to the Queen on September 8.
Apparently Britain’s new king phoned his youngest son and told him it was “not appropriate” for his wife to be there.
As a result, Harry snubbed dinner with King Charles III and his brother the Prince of Wales at the Scottish estate.
All of which – if true – sounds like such a toxic mess.
The idea that they could all be in the same place when the most important woman in their lives had just died, and not have dinner together, really shines a light on what an impenetrable mess their relationships have become.
How sad.
Full marks for Kate’s pants pose
IF only this tactic had worked as well for Bridget Jones . . .
Kate Beckinsale has attributed looking absolutely gorgeous in a recent bikini shot to nothing other than big pants.
After snapping a selfie, Kate wrote: “A full coverage knicker is remarkably helpful.”
I mean, I’m sure that full coverage helps – well it would certainly help me – but surely Kate’s fabulous physique has more to do with the fact that she works out for a whopping six hours a week.
The truth is that you get out what you put in.
And she looks stunning. Good for her.
Tell us beauty secret
JUST how does Christie Brinkley do it?
At the age of 68, she looks at least 30 years younger.
She decided to let us in on her secret in an Instagram post, revealing the four ways she keeps her youthful appearance.
Apparently, it all comes down to sleep, diet, hydration and skin protection.
She shared her favourite beauty products and talked about the anti-aging routine she follows religiously.
She wrote: “It’s what you do EVERY DAY that will determine how healthy and vibrant you look and feel.
“Sleep well, eat a rainbow organic diet, stay hydrated and protect and care for your skin 24 hours a day.”
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I would really love to believe that is true. If only there was a cream that shaved 30 years off.
So come on, Christie, tell us what’s really behind your flawless looks.