Calls to monitor online teen suicide talk

Mar 28 2008 by Tomos Livingstone, Western Mail

WEBSITES where teenagers discuss suicides or self-harm should offer links to charities and support services, a report aimed at making cyberspace safer suggested yesterday.

Television child psychologist Dr Tanya Byron said chat rooms provided an “outlet for young people who feel they have no other way to express their feelings”, and should be better monitored rather than banned.

Her report, commissioned by the Government, challenged the industry to take greater responsibility by drawing up codes of practice for social networking sites such as Bebo and MySpace, introducing more effective regulation of online advertising, and improving access to parental control software.

She also called for a new system of age-based classification for video games – similar to that used for films – and for the creation of a UK Council on Child Internet Safety directly answerable to the Prime Minister.

Calls for better regulation of social networking websites have intensified in the wake of a spate of apparent suicides in and around Bridgend. Seventeen youngsters have taken their own lives in the area since January 2007. Although several had their own web profiles on Bebo, police have ruled out any internet link between the deaths.

The Byron review notes, “Where online discussions or communities emerge around harmful behaviours, there is a risk of what Samaritans describe as an ‘echo chamber’ where users reinforce each others’ behaviour and negative feelings about themselves.”

It also calls for a clarification of the law to establish whether offering someone advice on killing themselves online constitutes a criminal offence.

The report adds, “Where content discussing harmful behaviours is hosted on a website or listed by a search engine, software that recognises words and phases can be used to make sure that there are advertising links to support services.”

Launching her report yesterday Dr Byron, probably best known for the BBC TV show House of Tiny Tearaways, said, “A useful way for us all to think about this is to look at how we protect children in places of benefit and risk in the real, offline, world: public swimming pools.

“Here there are safety signs and information; shallow as well as deep ends; swimming aids and lifeguards; doors, locks and alarms. However, children will sometimes take risks and jump into waters too deep for them or want to climb walls and get through locked doors – therefore we also teach them how to swim.

“We must adopt the same combination of approaches in order to enable our children and young people to navigate these exciting digital waters while supporting and empowering them to do so safely.”

The Government signalled yesterday it was preparing to implement the report’s recommendations. Ed Balls, the Children’s Minister, said, “Dr Byron’s recommendations will help parents to recognise risks and judge what is appropriate…This important issue remains a priority for Government “

Keith Towler, the Children’s Commissioner, said, “I welcome the recommendations in relation to child internet safety. In particular, I’m pleased that the report calls for a ‘properly funded’ public awareness campaign to help empower children and young people to keep themselves and each other safe.”

He added, “We must not solely rely on software to protect our children and young people. We need to teach them the importance of keeping themselves and their friends safe. 

“We also need to narrow this generational digital divide between children and their parents by equipping parents with practical and sensible advice so they can help their children to stay safe.”

Bridgend MP Madeleine Moon said, “I would like to see it go further, but we have to take the industry with us... there needs to be a balance between frightening parents and actually helping them to understand what the risks are online.

“This is new technology – it’s a new way of communicating for youngsters, and parents are playing catch-up.”

Ms Moon, who held a meeting with Bebo this week, said the site had a good record of offering links to helpful sites for youngsters. One problem was that too many youngsters using the Facebook site were choosing to make their personal pages completely public, she said.