B.C. Attorney General backs Williams Lake mother's push for online safety

B.C. Attorney General Niki Sharma has joined Chelsey Whittingham in calling for stronger protections against harmful online content targeting children, following her 13-year-old daughter Maddy's death last September.

Whittingham said Maddy lost her life after repeated exposure to harmful content pushed by a social media platform. Despite what she described as comprehensive parental safeguards — parental controls, monitored screen time, open communication, and a safe home — her family was unaware of the extent of content Maddy was being exposed to.

"Families cannot fight billion-dollar technology systems alone," Whittingham said Monday at an event in Williams Lake. She called for greater transparency around age verification, regulation of recommendation algorithms directed at children, controls on self-harm and suicide-promoting content targeting minors, independent oversight of platforms, and faster intervention mechanisms for youth.

Whittingham also emphasized that parents and children need education about how social media platforms maximize engagement regardless of harm. She noted that platforms are designed to maximize kids' time and attention online, and parents should be educated on setting effective time limits, monitoring use, and disabling algorithmic recommendations.

She said the effort requires cooperation from governments, educators, health-care providers, parents, and tech companies. While encouraged by the introduction of the federal Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act, Whittingham made clear that more action is needed. At a gymnastics event in Williams Lake on May 23, she and Maddy's siblings presented three gymnasts with a Spirit of the Sport Award in her memory.