Instagram owner Meta and Pinterest have made substantial donations to the charity established in memory of Molly Russell, a 14-year-old who took her own life in 2017 after viewing suicide and self-harm content on their platforms. A coroner determined that online material contributed to her death.
The donations went to the Molly Rose Foundation, which advocates for internet safety. Both companies declined to comment when approached by the BBC.
Molly’s family stated they decided against legal action and would “never accept compensation” for her death. Through their solicitor, they explained they would “pursue the aims we share with Meta and Pinterest through the Molly Rose Foundation to help ensure young people have a positive experience online.”
Meanwhile, Meta faces multiple lawsuits in the US from families claiming their children were harmed by social media, with attorneys general from over 40 states alleging platform designs caused harm to children. The first trial is expected in November.
Financial details of the donations remain undisclosed. The charity’s annual report states: “The Molly Rose Foundation has received grants from donors that wish to remain anonymous. Having considered their obligations, the Trustees have agreed to respect these wishes.” These payments reportedly began in 2024 and will continue over several years.
The timing of the agreement remains unclear. Recently, the foundation has expanded significantly, hiring a CEO, public policy managers, communications head, and fundraising manager.
No Russell family members have received money from these donations. Their statement emphasized: “We, Molly’s family, have always made clear that we would never accept compensation consequent upon Molly’s death.”
The Molly Rose Foundation has become a prominent critic of unregulated social media, particularly Meta. It advocates for strengthening the Online Safety Act rather than banning children’s social media access, as Australia plans. The charity demands tech companies take greater responsibility for algorithm-delivered content to young users.
Earlier this year, working with Pan Macmillan, the foundation sent every MP a book by Facebook whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams, containing critical claims about her seven years at the company.
Molly’s father, Ian Russell, serves as an unpaid trustee and remains an outspoken advocate. In January, he wrote to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer urging immediate action to protect young people online, claiming the UK was “going backwards on online safety.”
Russell specifically criticized Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg for discontinuing Facebook’s fact-checking program, saying Zuckerberg and X owner Elon Musk represented a “wholesale recalibration” toward a “laissez-faire, anything-goes model.” He told the BBC: “Mark Zuckerberg has changed the game fundamentally and shown that the platforms aren’t really here to play safe, they’re here to make money.”
US lawyer Matthew Bergman, founder of the Social Media Victims Law Centre, welcomed news of the donations and praised Russell’s “indefatigable efforts” to hold social media companies accountable.
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