EXCLUSIVE
A JERSEY teenager who believes Adolf Hitler never existed is just one example of how young people in the Island are being dangerously radicalised online, according to a senior teacher who has warned of tech-fuelled harm spiralling out of control.
Patrick Crossley, Deputy Head at Victoria College, said the boy formed his view after watching a YouTube conspiracy video.
“He has been spoken to by people here during the Occupation, he has been taken to the War Tunnels by his parents. His explanation is that those are just a tourist trap, and they’re over 50 years old, so we can’t know.
“That’s just one example.”
Speaking during an event at the Town Hall focused on online harms last Wednesday evening, Mr Crossley noted that his school’s safeguarding team had observed an “increase in certain behaviours and attitudes” since the covid-19 pandemic.
He added: “There are probably too many teenagers to count who have seen beheading videos on the internet, pornography of the most extreme variety that simulates and possibly in some cases records rape.
“We have young people at school who got tearful when their parents took their phones away, who need to leave lessons to go and check their phones. We have young people who talk to ChatGPT as a friend, as opposed to a sort of information checker or synthesiser.
“We’ve had young people who, when the next iteration of the computer game Call of Duty comes out, we can guarantee they won’t be in because they’re staying home to play it.
“It’s everywhere, every year group, every friendship group.”
He described these “extreme” examples as the result of thousands of digital interactions that slowly reshape young minds.
A parent of a teenager told the JEP that when they tried to speak to their child about their phone use, the young person responded: “You just don’t understand – none of us want this, none of us know how to stop.
“We will be known as the ‘lost generation’, we will be known as the generation from when social media became prevalent to when you guys woke up to its damage.”
Multiple parents at the event spoke about how their child had tried to self-harm or take their own lives as a result of either having their phones taken away from them, or because of online bullying.
Meanwhile, occupational practitioner Dr Chris Edmond spoke about the health impact on young people and young adults – from increased demand on mental health services to increased short-sightedness and young employees who can’t concentrate.
Former Channel Island Data Commissioner Emma Martins said she didn’t want to engage in “scaremongering” about phones. Instead, she said that the problem was with social media companies, and not with the devices themselves or even services like banking being online.
She asked: “What is the business model of Facebook? What is the business model of WhatsApp? What is the business model of TikTok?
“We’re treated like a natural resource – our time, our attention, our eyeballs, are profited from.
“What is the thing that gets people’s attention the most? Violence, sex, generally horrible things. Once it starts, then it spirals.
“Not all devices are bad, not all tech is bad. We need to be really clear: it’s not anti-tech, it’s not anti-innovation. But… we cannot have innovation without safety.”
The event – organised by Emily Jennings, who is part of the Health Professionals for Safer Screens group – was attended by parents, teachers and a number of politicians, including Sustainable Development Minister Kirsten Morel.
Deputy Morel was asked about the possibility of banning social media until a specific age, following in the footsteps of Australia.
He said that new data protection legislation is currently “going through”, which is expected to give Jersey’s Information Commissioner the ability to remove content.
Added criminal laws would create an alternative to the UK’s Online Safety Bill, he said.
