Experts Caution About Big Brother Vibes As Facebook Rolls Out Suicide-Prevention Tools
A menu will let friends report posts that hint at possible self-harm or suicide.
The New York Times:
Facebook Offers Tools For Those Who Fear A Friend May Be Suicidal
With more than 1.65 billion members worldwide posting regularly about their behavior, Facebook is planning to take a more direct role in stopping suicide. On Tuesday, in the biggest step by a major technology company to incorporate suicide prevention tools into its platform, the social network introduced mechanisms and processes to make it easier for people to help friends who post messages about suicide or self-harm. With the new features, people can flag friends’ posts that they deem suicidal; the posts will be reviewed by a team at the social network that will then provide language to communicate with the person who is at risk, as well as information on suicide prevention. (Isaac, 6/14)
San Jose Mercury News:
Facebook Rolls Out Suicide-Prevention Tools Globally
The dark thoughts that flow through the minds of people contemplating suicide might find their way to a social media site, and Facebook wants to make it easier for friends and family to help. The tech firm on Tuesday said it is rolling out worldwide tools aimed at preventing suicide, expanding its reach beyond the United States. Working with mental health groups such as Forefront, Lifeline and SAVE.org, Facebook started working on suicide prevention about a decade ago after a string of teen suicides in Palo Alto...But the tools also drew some criticism from advocacy groups, including Consumer Watchdog, which raised concerns that Facebook wasn't doing enough to protect users from the misuse of the tools. (Wong, 6/15)
