Natalie Barr has unleashed on social media companies for not doing enough to remove graphic content after her son saw horrific footage of recent stabbings.
On Saturday, footage of Joel Cauchi, 40, running through Westfield Bondi Junction with a 30cm knife and his bloodied victims did the rounds on social media.
Just days later, a bishop was stabbed by an alleged terrorist in an incident that was inadvertently live-streamed by the church.
‘I don’t get why they can’t take it down sooner,’ a fired-up Barr said on Friday.
‘My son, who’s a young adult, came home and said, “Mum, I’ve just seen four people stabbed today”… it’s the world we’re living in.’
Barr shares two sons with her husband Andrew: Hunter, 18, and Lachlan, 22.
Natalie Barr (centre) has unleashed on social media companies for not doing enough to remove graphic images and video after her own son saw people being stabbed
On Saturday, footage of Joel Cauchi, 40, running through Westfield Bondi Junction with a 30cm knife and his bloodied victims did the rounds on social media
Social media companies are increasingly facing criticism over their role in allowing graphic content and misinformation to be shared.
‘Switch it off if you can. Switch it off,’ Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said on ABC News on Wednesday.
‘I really don’t think that the social media companies are doing as much as they ought to be to support the police in their efforts to keep calm in the community.’
E-Safety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant told ABC Radio she would consider legal options against X and Meta, the parent company of Facebook, after issuing removal notices for extreme material on Tuesday.
The companies have 24 hours to act.
‘I wouldn’t say that they don’t care,’ Grant said, adding ‘unfortunately, we have seen a ratcheting back of trust and safety operations across the platforms and across the industry.’
Asked by a listener whether she had the power to shut down X in Australia, Grant said she had a wide range of powers including ‘different kinds of court notices’, which she would consider at 2.30pm on Wednesday once the 24-hour window had expired.
A 16-year-old boy has been arrested over what investigators labelled a religiously motivated terror attack on Monday at Christ the Good Shepherd Church at Wakeley in the city’s west
A 16-year-old boy has been arrested and charged over what investigators labelled a religiously motivated terror attack on Monday at Christ the Good Shepherd Church at Wakeley in the city’s west.
Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel and a priest were hospitalised along with the boy.
Videos and photos of the attack, captured during a live-stream of the sermon, started being posted to X, sparking a riot outside the church.
The dramatic events at the church came two days after Cauchi attacked shoppers, mostly women, in the Westfield Bondi Junction centre.
He was shot dead by police.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and NSW Premier Chris Minns have both raised concerns about the role of social media in spreading false information and sowing disunity.
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