A teenager struggling with anorexia was searching Google for how many calories she could eat a day to live before she tragically committed suicide.
Victorian father Robb Evans said his daughter Liv’s battle with her eating disorder was sparked by schoolyard bullies and fuelled by social media before her death in April last year.
“The claws were so deep I couldn’t see where to recover,” she said of her 15-year-old daughter, clutching the urn under her right arm.
While she is still seeking clarity on what her daughter was exposed to, the posts she showed her included advice on how to mask illnesses with water and clothing.
“Things got more sinister when we looked at how many calories you could consume in a day to live,” he said.
“She was looking for this content and then she was presented with more and more.”
Despite his grief, Mr Evans has poured his energy into a campaign to force teenagers under 16 off social media.
Mr Evans previously told Channel Nine’s 60 Minutes that social media giant Instagram took advantage of his daughter “whether intentionally or not”.
Victorian father Robb Evans speaks out following the death of his daughter Liv in April last year
“People who say, ‘I’m healthy and living on 200 calories a day,'” Evans told the show.
“I said, ‘Liv, they’re lying.'”
“I told them, ‘You have to understand that these people can say they are healthy,’ but I told them, ‘You can’t survive on 200 calories a day and here’s why.'”
Meta and TikTok allow access to their platforms to children aged 13 and older, although it is not easy to verify ages on either of them.
The 36 Months campaign, co-led by media personality Michael “Wippa” Wipfli, has also garnered support from comedian Hamish Blake, Hollywood actress Tahyna MacManus, entrepreneurs, academics and parents.
A petition signed by 110,000 people was presented to the New South Wales Parliament on Wednesday.
Even without platforms implementing a “very simple” technical method for age verification, enacting a legal minimum would allow teens to stay away and parents to enforce bans, supporters say.
Liv Evans was exposed to disturbing information on social media platforms during her battle with an eating disorder.
Wipfli denied orchestrating a social media attack and said Australia needed to recognise that young children were more vulnerable to doom-scrolling and other key features of Instagram and TikTok.
“We need it now: there are children on the edge, so we have no time to waste,” Wipfli said.
Eating disorder experts say teenagers need more time to develop without the influence of social media and want a ban for under-16s, among other changes.
“Adolescence is the most common age of onset for eating disorders in Australia,” the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Eating Disorders told a federal inquiry.
‘Because of the content loop that reinforces appearance ideals, eating control, etc., the algorithm can reinforce challenges related to developing an eating disorder and seeking treatment and recovery.’
Instagram’s parent company says it has spent more than $US5 billion (AU$7.5 billion) on security in the past year alone.
Teens searching for content related to eating disorders or body image issues now see a pop-up with advice and an easy way to connect with support organizations like the Butterfly Foundation.
“We have developed, and continue to review and update, our approach to eating disorder content in consultation with experts around the world,” Meta told a federal investigation on social media.
Mr Evans said quiet children like his daughter needed protection.
Age verification for online alcohol purchases has been trialled in New South Wales, and the state government has said it may report on similar pilot projects for social media.
A statewide summit in October is expected to generate innovative solutions to social media challenges.
Mr Evans said quiet children like his daughter needed protection.
“She was very loving and kind, very creative, loved animals and never had a bad word to say about anyone,” he said.
“Obviously I miss her every day.”
This global crisis has led politicians in Florida, in the United States, to call for children under 14 to be banned from accessing social networks, while those aged 15 and 16 will need parental consent.
Texas has also recently legislated that parental consent will be required before a user under 18 can open an account.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland says the Australian government will closely monitor how these bans work and whether they are effective.
This comes after South Australia also decided to ban social media for children under 14.
The state government has appointed former Chief Justice Robert French to conduct a legal inquiry into the ban on children’s accounts.
Mr French will examine what regulatory and technological “pathways” the government could pursue to institute its ban.
The government policy would also require parental consent for children aged 14 and 15.
Meanwhile, in New South Wales, Premier Chris Minns said a summit would be held in October “to address the increasing harm that online platforms are having on children and young people”.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said the government was taking children’s mental health seriously.
Lifeline 13 11 14
Children’s Helpline 1800 55 1800 (for people aged 5-25)
Mariposa Foundation 1800 334 673