We must protect young people from online harms | Letters
The disturbing account from a 15‑year‑old girl describing the misogyny she faces online (I am a 15-year-old girl.Let me show you the vile misogyny that confronts me on social media every day, 23 February) will come as no surprise to those of us working to safeguard young people’s mental health.The scale of harmful content in online worlds is deeply concerning.The author has been brave in shining a light on her experiences, and many young people today are exposed to misogyny and hatred in ways that are difficult for those who are not digital natives to fully understand.Yet it is also important to recognise that the online world is not wholly negative, since for many young people it offers connection, solidarity, creativity and meaningful support.
Any policy response must protect access to these positive spaces, not cut young people off from them.A social media ban for under‑16s, while well-intentioned, cannot fix the underlying problem that platforms are designed in ways that allow misogyny, harassment and hate to spread unchecked, often pushing such content towards users who have never sought it out.Delaying access without addressing these design flaws means young people will eventually enter environments that remain unsafe.If an age limit is introduced, it must form part of a wider package of measures, including stronger regulation, clear expectations around platform design, transparency about algorithms, and meaningful accountability when platforms fail to protect their users.Equally important is recognising that young people are experts in their own digital lives.
If we are serious about addressing mental health challenges among young people, we must include them in the discussion and demand far greater responsibility from the platforms that shape their lives.Alexa KnightDirector of policy and influencing, Mental Health Foundation As a male psychotherapist, this article confirmed strongly what I see in my work.Apart from my concern for girls subjected to this environment and its impact on their self-image and perception of boys, I am also concerned about what is happening to the boys.With the rise of single-parent families, 25% of all families with dependent children in the UK, predominantly led by women, it seems probable that such a family group will lack a consistent male presence.In such an environment, how does the boy find a positive model for his development?We must recognise how a single-gender family leaves boys with no consistent male model.
This leaves them exposed to the malign influences of misogynistic online and cultural influencers, who promote an exciting but toxic image of masculinity.We need more emphasis on finding the positive in men, alongside the proper concern for the damage done to the girls.Dr Ralph HoltomPsychoanalytic psychotherapist, Colchester As an aunt of three teenage women (and two teenage men) as well as a social worker with 30 years’ experience, I am appalled at the lack of intervention by politicians and social media firms to protect young people from the hostility that pervades social media.This is exacerbated by the depletion of youth clubs and community resources for young people.We owe it to the current generation of teenagers to put this right before further harm is done.
Rebecca SolwayOld Trafford, Manchester I wholeheartedly agree with a ban on social media for under-16s,I have already implemented one in my own household,My daughter, 14, and my son, 12, do not have any social media accounts of their own and my daughter’s phone does not have mobile data or any social media apps on it,Her Google account is still set to child permissions so she can’t install any apps without my knowledge,My son watches YouTube videos with my account so that I can see everything in the history and can filter out channels as needed.
They have no need for TikTok or Snapchat or Facebook or Instagram.They can talk to their friends through texts or over the phone.And I have talked to them both at length about the toxicity lurking online, as every parent should be doing with their own teens.I implore all women and girls online not to take the words of misogynists to heart.Destroying your self-worth is their goal, because a girl who feels worthless is easier to control.
When they accuse women of treating promiscuity like a competition, they are projecting.When they criticise a girl’s looks, they are gaslighting.They want you to hate yourself because they hate themselves, and the only control they can exert in their lives is control over women.Do not let them control you.Do not let them define you.
You decide your own worth and you have your whole life ahead of you, so stand tall and be unstoppable.Rachel SpiresGarland, Texas, US I am a 96-year-old female who cannot thank you enough for the opinion piece.I wish I could say that the misogyny the writer is experiencing online is a new phenomenon.The language in which it is expressed online is new, but the fear and hatred of girls and women that she and her peers are being exposed to 24/7 is as old as the hills.What I find so shocking is that it has taken a 15-year-old girl to break the silence about the hostile online depiction of half of the human species.
That she has had the courage to do what we, her elders, have failed to do is utterly amazing.Jane Roland MartinEmerita professor of philosophy, University of Massachusetts, Boston, US Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
Netflix shares jump after walking away from Warner Bros Discovery deal, clearing way for Paramount – business live
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the world economy and the financial markets.Every good drama needs a few twists and turns. And the race for ownership of Warner Bros Discovery has certainly delivered.Overnight, Netflix has walked way from the deal, declining to match a new, improved takeover offer from its rival, Paramount Skydance.Netflix’s hopes were blown away by Paramount lifting its offer for the whole of Warner Bros to $31 per share, beating Netflix’s bid of $27
Ocado failing to deliver on its potential as one of UK’s great technology hopes
Only six years ago, the boss of Ocado Group was writing the obituary for supermarkets as he predicted that a surge in online grocery shopping during the pandemic had brought forward the hi-tech future.“Not every store will disappear, but there will be a dramatic shift,” Tim Steiner said at the height of the Covid pandemic, when shopping from the sofa became the only option for many.Fast-forward to today and the prospect seems distant as the UK grocery technology group again slashes jobs as it battles heavy losses.Shares in the group slumped more than 6% to 220p on Thursday, as it revealed worse than expected annual losses and 1,000 job cuts, half of which are in research and development. At that price, shares are 22% above Ocado’s stock market float price of 180p in 2010 and a staggering 90% lower than their pandemic peak
Woman at heart of US trial says she was addicted to social media at age six
The young woman at the heart of the landmark trial about the addictive nature of social media testified for the first time on Thursday, saying she got hooked on YouTube starting at age six and Instagram at nine. By the time she was 10, she said, she had become depressed and was engaging in self-harm.The woman, who is now 20 and known by her initials KGM, is the lead plaintiff in an expansive lawsuit against YouTube and Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook. The crux of the case alleges social media companies intentionally create addictive products, leading to mental health issues in young people.KGM testified on Thursday that her use of social media made her anxious and insecure, and features like beauty filters distorted her self-image
Riaz Hasan obituary
My father, Riaz Hasan, who has died aged 87, was a water resources engineer with a distinguished career working across 40 countries – in the 1970s with the British firm Halcrow and, from the 80s, at the UN and the World Bank.Originally from Hyderabad, Riaz arrived in the UK in 1965 with £3 and an A–Z, invited, like many engineers in India at that time, by the government. After completing a master’s degree in water resources at Bradford University, where he developed a love of Yorkshire pudding and received his degree from Harold Wilson (which he described as a real privilege), he embarked on his career designing life-saving, long-term water and food solutions for the most vulnerable and those affected by war, famine and natural disasters.Born in the small town of Warangal, near Hyderabad, to Mohammed, an English professor, and his wife, Khadija, Riaz went to Nizam college. He did his engineering degree at Osmania University, graduating in 1960, then got his first job at the Central Water Power Commission (CWPC) in Delhi
Australia v India: second women’s one-day cricket international – live
A perfect yorker from Kashvee catches Healy’s back foot and deflects on to the stumps. A disappointing way to go for the captain, but a great ball from Kashvee – her first ODI wicket.4th over: Australia 20-0 (Healy 6, Litchfield 14)Healy gets her first look at the strike since the first over and starts by punching one over midwicket – but not very far over! It just evades a diving Jemimah to run away for four. She scales back her risk-taking endeavours after that, with three dot balls in a row before a nice pull shot finds the gap and she gets Litchfield back on strike for a harmless defensive shot to end the over.3rd over: Australia 15-0 (Healy 1, Litchfield 14)Kashvee resumes her spell after a tight first over
Birmingham City’s owners explore moving into rugby union and buying Prem franchise
Birmingham City’s owner, Knighthead Capital Management, is among a number of American investors exploring the purchase of potential new franchises in Prem Rugby before a radical shake-up of the sport due to be ratified by the Rugby Football Union on Friday.The RFU council will vote at Twickenham on proposals to ringfence the 10-team Prem with no promotion or relegation until 2030, when a staged expansion is planned, beginning with the addition of two more teams.While former top-flight sides such as London Irish, Wasps and Worcester Warriors as well as ambitious Champ clubs like Ealing Trailfinders will be given the opportunity to apply, Prem Rugby is also keen to secure new additions. New York-based merchant bank, The Raine Group, and Deloitte have been engaged with a brief to discuss franchise opportunities with potential new owners, as well as bringing new investment into Prem Rugby itself.Knighthead is understood to have expressed interest in acquiring a franchise as the next stage of its multisport strategy that has seen it buy a 49% share in the Birmingham Phoenix Hundred franchise, and a majority share in Netball Super League club Birmingham Panthers
Polls close in Gorton and Denton byelection after three-way battle between Greens, Labour and Reform
The leadership issue may be settled, but Your Party’s struggle for electoral relevance has only just begun
Dual national rules are another own goal for Labour | Brief letters
The Your Party committee election was chaos. Why break the habit of a lifetime? | John Crace
Labour, Green party and Reform make final pitch to voters in Gorton and Denton – as it happened
Your Party under Corbyn to work with Greens on ‘coordinated left-flank offensive’