Prince William Reacts To Heartbreaking Inquest Of Teen Girl: ‘Online Safety For Our Children Needs To Be A Prerequisite’
01.10.2022 - 04:43
/ etcanada.com
Prince William shared an important message after Molly Russell’s cause of death was determined.
On Friday, an inquest revealed that social media played a part in the London teenager’s death after she took her own life in 2017. Russell was only 14-years-old.
“No parent should ever have to endure what Ian Russell [Molly’s father] and his family have been through. They have been so incredibly brave,” the Prince of Wales tweeted. “Online safety for our children and young people needs to be a prerequisite, not an afterthought.”
William, 40, concluded the tweet with the letter “W,” an indicator that the message came directly from the royal.
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The inquest, led by Coroner Andrew Walker, disclosed that Molly had consumed an alarming amount of online content, including images of self-harm and suicide, on platforms like Instagram and Pinterest, which used algorithms to show Molly the images without her seeking them herself.
Walker stressed that the content “shouldn’t have been available for a child to see”.
“It’s likely the material viewed by Molly… affected her mental health in a negative way and contributed to her death in a more than minimal way,” Walker said. “It would not be safe to leave suicide as a conclusion. She died from an act of self-harm while suffering from depression and the negative effects of online content.”
The coroner added that he’s working on a report centered on the “prevention of future deaths,” which he intends to send to the British government, Ofcom — the U.K.’s communications regulator — and social media platforms.
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