- Police have been called regarding social media abuse
- Footy stars have copped sickening abuse online
- Social media firms have been urged to tighten protections
The AFL has urged social media bosses to introduce better protections against sickening online abuse after Harley Reid was targeted.
Reid’s West Coast coach Adam Simpson revealed this week that the levels of abuse has risen to the extent ‘where you need to get the police involved’ in a wake up call to teams across the nation.
Teenage sensation Reid and teammate Elliot Teo are among the Eagles stars to have been targeted online.
Meanwhile, Fremantle star Jordan Clark locked his social media accounts after he was the recipient of abuse.
‘There needs to be more protection of players with social media,’ Clark said.
Harley Reid has been targeted by sickening online abuse on social media
North Melbourne president Dr Sonja Hood stepped away from X due to vile trolling
‘Whether it’s racial, homophobic or just generally attacking someone, there needs to be more protection.’
North Melbourne president Dr Sonja Hood took herself off Twitter – now known as X – due to gender-based abuse while Western Bulldogs teenager Ryley Sanders also deactivated his Instagram account.
However, it has been reported that Sanders was disinterested 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 a member of a club or the league. Alternatively, the 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 numerous times to the social media platforms that we do want to see them do more to address these issues,’ Tanya Hosch, AFL general manager of inclusion and social policy, said.
‘There’s different technologies now that we’re trialling to see whether that can assist to prevent some of that hate speech from coming through on to people’s platforms.
‘But also we really need to continue to educate.
‘Our players who are targeted are just doing their job and some what they endure as a result of that is just heartbreaking and again does take a toll.
‘So we really do want to see the platforms put more in place to help.’
