Mother says she found YouTube Kids videos with explicit instructions on suicide

SALT LAKE CITY — A Florida mother said she found videos on YouTube and YouTube Kids that give children explicit instructions on how to kill themselves, CNN reports.

The mother, Free Hess, said she saw a video back in July 2018 after another mother told her about it. It was a cartoon video on YouTube Kids. And, right in the middle of the video, was footage of a man wearing sunglasses explaining how children can die by suicide, according to CNN.

Hess then told a number of groups about the videos. Hess said YouTube Kids removed the specific video a week after she notified groups about it.

Hess said she saw the video again in February on YouTube. The company took down the video after a few days of flagging by concerned viewers, including Hess, according to CNN.

• "It makes me angry and sad and frustrated," Hess told CNN. "I'm a pediatrician, and I'm seeing more and more kids coming in with self-harm and suicide attempts. I don't doubt that social media and things such as this is contributing."

Hess, who wrote about the issue on her blog, said she saw a number of YouTube Kids videos "glorifying not only suicide but sexual exploitation and abuse, human trafficking, gun violence and domestic violence." She said one used "Minecraft" themes to depict a school shooting.

• "I am disturbed, I am saddened, I am disgusted," the physician wrote. "But I am also relieved that I was there to see this video with my own eyes, so that I could take the appropriate actions to protect my family."

Reactions:

YouTube sent a statement to Ars Technica about the videos.

"We work to make the videos in YouTube Kids family-friendly and take feedback very seriously. We appreciate people drawing problematic content to our attention, and make it possible for anyone to flag a video. Flagged videos are manually reviewed 24/7 and any videos that don't belong in the app are removed. We've also been investing in new controls for parents including the ability to hand pick videos and channels in the app. We are making constant improvements to our systems and recognize there's more work to do."

Nadine Kaslow, a former president of the American Psychological Association, told The Washington Post that taking down the videos won't be enough.

"For children who have been exposed, they've been exposed. There needs to be messaging — this is why it's not OK," Kaslow said.

If you or someone you know may be struggling with suicidal thoughts or showing warning signs of suicide, please consider calling the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255), texting the Crisis Text Line at 741741, or seeking help from a professional.

from Deseret News https://ift.tt/2EBo1sV