A teenager who liked some 'sad quotes' on Instagram while feeling down over being bullied has revealed how easy it was to become sucked into suicide and self-harm groups.
Former Instagram staffers and some of the app's early creators have lifted the lid on how the platform uses algorithms to lure in users in revealing new BBC documentary, The Instagram Effect.
The documentary emphasises Instagram's shift from a chronological feed to one controlled by algorithms, which took place in 2016 - meaning users' experience and behaviour on the platform was altered.
It tells the story of 17-year-old Abby, a British teenager who fell into the dark world of extreme online self-harm groups when she left school because she was being bullied.
After joining the group, Abby was taught methods of suicide, was encouraged to self-harm during video calls with other young Instagram users, and was hospitalised after attempts on her life.
Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen claims in the show that teenagers are 'killing themselves' because of Instagram.
Abby, 17, from Newcastle, fell into the dark world of extreme online self-harm groups when she left school because she was being bullied
Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen who last year disclosed thousands of internal Facebook documents to US lawmakers, warned that teenagers are 'killing themselves' because of Instagram
'This is just the beginning,' Haugen said. 'And the thing that I think young people see, that maybe people a little bit...
China has removed all medical advertisements on national television channels containing false claims as of the end of March, the National Radio and Television Administration said on Thursday. The ...