
Molly RussellâÂÂs father to tell UK cinemagoers: âÂÂInstagram helped kill my daughterâÂÂ
In ad to be shown before The Social Reckoning, Ian Russell will say âÂÂtoo little has changedâ since death of Molly, 14
The father of Molly Russell will tell UK cinemagoers âÂÂInstagram helped kill my daughterâ before screenings of a new film about Mark ZuckerbergâÂÂs social media empire.
Speaking in an advert to be shown before The Social Reckoning, released on Friday, Ian Russell says âÂÂtoo little has changedâ since the death of his 14 year-old daughter, who took her own life in 2017 after viewing harmful content on Instagram.
In a 30-second ad he will ask viewers of the Aaron Sorkin film about the Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen to donate to the Molly Rose Foundation (MRF) to âÂÂstop companies like Meta endangering young people like MollyâÂÂ.

Speaking directly to the audience, Ian Russell will say: âÂÂIâÂÂve said it for years: Instagram helped kill my daughter. Too little has changed. Promises to deliver safety have failed. Algorithms still force streams of toxic content on to children. So if you agree harmful tech is unacceptable and bosses like Mark Zuckerberg should be held accountable, please support Molly Rose Foundation to stop companies like Meta endangering young people like Molly.âÂÂ
HaugenâÂÂs revelations about Facebook and InstagramâÂÂs approach to online safety, detailed in the Sorkin film, included internal research showing Instagram content had a negative impact on teenage girlsâ mental health. At the time ZuckerbergâÂÂs company said the coverage of the research âÂÂfocused on a limited set of findings and casts them in a negative lightâÂÂ.

The film also covers HaugenâÂÂs testimony to the US Congress in which she said the social media corporation put âÂÂastronomical profits before peopleâÂÂ, harmed children and destabilised democracies.
Haugen is played in the film by the Oscar winner Mikey Madison while Zuckerberg is played by SuccessionâÂÂs Jeremy Strong. The GuardianâÂÂs review of the film, a quasi-sequel to the Sorkin-scripted The Social Network, says it âÂÂrattles along at an entertaining clipâÂÂ, adding that Strong â taking over from Jesse Eisenberg in Social Network â delivers a âÂÂvery interesting Zuckerberg impersonation, standing and sitting like a Thunderbird puppetâÂÂ.
The 2022 inquest into MollyâÂÂs death was a landmark moment for online safety. The coroner ruled that âÂÂdied from an act of self-harm while suffering from depression and the negative effects of online contentâ and that algorithms had pushed harmful content to Molly that she had not requested.
At the time Ian Russell accused Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, of guiding his daughter on a âÂÂdemented trail of life-sucking contentâ that included material related to self-harm, suicide and depression. Meta later made a donation to MRF in lieu of a legal settlement to MollyâÂÂs family.
In a statement issued following the release of the documentary Molly vs the Machines this year, which recreates moments from the inquest, Meta said its thoughts âÂÂremain with MollyâÂÂs friends and her familyâÂÂ. The company said it had put safety measures in place since MollyâÂÂs death including defaulting all teenagers under 18 into private accounts, and restricting who could message them and the content they saw.
