- The police have been called over abuse on social media.
- Football stars have suffered sickening online abuse
- Social media companies have been urged to strengthen protections.
The AFL has urged social media bosses to introduce better protections against sickening online abuse after Harley Reid was attacked.
Reid’s west coast coach, Adam Simpson, revealed this week that levels of abuse have risen to the point “where the police need to be involved”, in a wake-up call to teams across the country.
Teenage sensation Reid and teammate Elliot Teo are among the Eagles stars who have been attacked online.
Meanwhile, Fremantle star Jordan Clark blocked his social media accounts after receiving abuse.
“There needs to be more protection for players on social media,” Clark said.
Harley Reid has been subjected to disgusting online abuse on social media
North Melbourne president Dr Sonja Hood walked away from X over vile trolling
“Whether it’s racial, homophobic or just attacking someone, there needs to be more protection.”
North Melbourne president Dr Sonja Hood has quit Twitter, now known as X, due to gender abuse, while Western Bulldogs teenager Ryley Sanders also deactivated his Instagram account.
However, it has been reported that Sanders was not interested in using the platform.
X is owned by Tesla billionaire Elon Musk, while Meta, the company that owns Facebook and Instagram, is run by Mark Zuckerberg.
The AFL says it can only take action against trolls if they are members of a club or league. Alternatively, they can intervene if a player files a police report.
Social media bosses Elon Musk (left) and Mark Zuckerberg (right) have been urged to do more.
“I have said on numerous occasions to social media platforms that we want them to do more to address these issues,” said Tanya Hosch, the AFL’s general manager of inclusion and social policy.
‘We are now testing different technologies to see if they can help prevent some of that hate speech from reaching people’s platforms.
‘But we also have to continue educating.
“Our targeted players are simply doing their job and some of what they endure as a result of that is just heartbreaking and again it takes its toll on them.”
“So we really want to see more platforms established to help.”