Online material viewed by schoolgirl Molly Russell “was not safe” and “shouldn’t have been available for a child to see”, a senior coroner has concluded.
Molly, from Harrow in north-west London, took her own life in November 2017 aged 14, prompting her family to campaign for better internet safety.
The inquest heard how the teenager accessed material from the “ghetto of the online world”, with her family arguing that sites such as Pinterest and Instagram recommended accounts or posts that “promoted” suicide and self-harm, reports the Mirror.
Coroner Andrew Walker found that Molly “died from an act of self harm whilst suffering from depression and the negative effects of online content.”
In a statement after the coroner’s conclusion, NSPCC chief executive Sir Peter Wanless condemned what he described as Meta and Pinterest’s “abject failure” to protect Molly from content no child should ever see.
The coroner said some of the content Molly viewed was "particularly graphic" and "normalised her condition," focusing on a "limited" view without any counter-balance.
Mr Walker said he did not "think it would be safe" to leave suicide as a conclusion for himself to consider, instead finding Molly "died from an act of self-harm while suffering depression and the negative effects of online content".
He added the teenager was "exposed to material that may have influenced her in a negative way and, in addition, what had started as a depression had become a more serious depressive illness".
“Molly turned to celebrities for help not realising there was little prospect of a reply.
“In some cases, the content was particularly graphic, tending to portray self-harm and suicide as an inevitable consequence of a condition that could not be recovered from.
“It is likely that the above material viewed by Molly, already suffering with a depressive illness and vulnerable due to her age, affected her mental health in a negative way and contributed to her death in a more than minimal way.
“Molly Rose Russell died from an act of self-harm whist suffering from depression and the negative effects of online content.”
Mr Walker said he would be sending a Prevention of Future Deaths report to Instagram, Pinterest, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and Ofcom.
He said to Molly’s family: “I cannot begin to understand what you have been through following such an enormous tragedy and then spend so long trying to find out what happened and how it happened.”
Molly's father Ian Russell said he hopes the conclusion of the inquest into her death "will be an important step in bringing about much needed change" after a coroner found she died from the "negative effects of online content".
Speaking outside North London Coroner’s Court, he said: “In the last week we’ve heard much about one tragic story – Molly’s story.
“Sadly, there are too many others similarly affected right now.
"At this point I just want to say however dark it seems, there is always hope, and if you’re struggling please speak to someone you trust or one of the many wonderful support organisations, rather than engage with online content that may be harmful.
“Please do what you can to live long and stay strong."
Following the conclusions, the NSPCC's Sir Peter said: “Molly’s family will forever pay the price of Meta and Pinterest’s abject failure to protect her from content no child should see, but the Online Safety Bill is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reverse this imbalance between families and Big Tech.
“This must be a turning point and further delay or watering down of the legislation that addresses preventable abuse of our children would be inconceivable to parents across the UK.”
Children's Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza also blasted social media giants following the inquest - telling them to "get a moral compass and step up".
Ms de Souza added that she wanted the Online Safety Bill to be implemented to "enshrine children's safety in law".
She said: "What the court has been hearing and what has been reported is absolutely harrowing. We're talking about thousands and thousands of posts we know she liked - the most awful pro-suicide and self-harm (content).
"We have to think about a little girl who is depressed and upset, seeing those images - it's just horrendous."
In a statement following the conclusion of the inquest into the death of Molly Russell, a spokeswoman for Meta said: “Our thoughts are with the Russell family and everyone who has been affected by this tragic death.
“We’re committed to ensuring that Instagram is a positive experience for everyone, particularly teenagers, and we will carefully consider the coroner’s full report when he provides it.
“We’ll continue our work with the world’s leading independent experts to help ensure that the changes we make offer the best possible protection and support for teens.”
The head of health and wellbeing at Instagram’s parent company Meta and the head of community operations at Pinterest had both apologised during the inquest for content Molly viewed.
Meta executive Elizabeth Lagone said she believed posts which the Russell family argued “encouraged” suicide were safe when the teenager viewed them.
Pinterest’s Judson Hoffman told the inquest the site was “not safe” when Molly used it.
The inquest was told out of the 16,300 posts Molly saved, shared or liked on Instagram in the six-month period before her death, 2,100 were depression, self-harm or suicide-related.
The court was played 17 clips the teenager viewed on the site – prompting “the greatest of warning” from the coroner.
The inquest also heard details of emails sent to Molly by Pinterest, with headings such as “10 depression pins you might like” and “new ideas for you in depression”.
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