Rio Ferdinand has helped launch an anti-bullying campaign ‘Don’t Face it Alone’ at No. 10

  • At the ‘Don’t Face it Alone’ launch, the former England football player backed The Online Safety Bill.
  • Ferdinand has also called for a new social media platform, after criticising social media companies for failing to react appropriately to bullying online.
  • The campaign was set up in light of research that showed that 6 in 10 parents felt helpless in protecting their child online.
  • To read more about this story, you can visit the Independent Website.

BBC found a series of ‘up skirting’ photos on Facebook

  • A BBC investigation found thousands of users were uploading and sharing images and videos of ‘up skirting’.
  • Up skirting is when images or videos of under a woman’s skirt are taken.
  • Meta, Facebook parent’s company, reports that it has removed multiple accounts and pages.
  • You can read more on this story on the BBC website.

89% of people feel social media negatively affects their mental health

  • A study by The Cybersmile Foundation discovered that 89% of people felt that social media could negatively affect their mental health.
  • The Digital Wellbeing 2022 study asked 1000 people aged 16-24 years about their use of social media and how it affects their wellbeing.
  • Topics such as body image, social media addiction and consumption of upsetting news were covered in their research.
  • For more information, you can read this story on the Marketing Tech News website.

Young people may be ‘self-medicating’ with illegal substances rather than seeking help

  • There are concerns that young people may be using cannabis and diazepam, as they do not want to wait for months to access counselling.
  • Illegal substances may be more accessible due to social media, warns support services.
  • The director of Mental Health and addiction charity, Adferiad Recovery, said the charity had dealt with children aged 13-14, and those even younger.
  • For more on this story, go to the BBC Website.