Social media inquiry: Chair Lucy Wicks gives personal insight into inquiry

MP Lucy Wicks, chair of the committee that has been probing online safety, has shared some of her own horrific stories of abuse. It comes as the inquiry is extended to March.

Having suffered horrific abuse at the hands of online attackers both before and since entering politics, Central Coast MP Lucy Wicks was perfectly positioned to head up the parliamentary committee that had the escalating problem at its heart.

The former teacher, Liberal party staffer and communications executive has been the chair of the Select Committee on Social Media and Online Safety since late last year.

The inquiry, which has wrapped up public hearings and was due to hand down its recommendations this week, has been extended for one month to speak to children about online safety.

Ms Wicks spoke with the Central Coast Express Advocate about the hearings and shared her own personal experiences with online trolls and the great personal impact that had on her mental health and safety.

Robertson federal Liberal MP Lucy Wicks. Picture: Annika Enderborg

She said when offered the opportunity to chair the committee she didn’t think twice.

“My own personal experience before I was an MP over 20 years ago included horrific cyber-bullying which traumatised me greatly and left me with a deep scar,” she said.

“At the time I was in my 20s and wasn’t equipped to deal with it. Now we have more of an awareness of cyber bullying.”

Ms Wicks said she had also been subjected to online abuse in her role as Robertson federal Liberal MP.

While she didn’t want to give too much air to the horrible messages she had received, she revealed she once had someone tell her she was a “whore (who) deserves to have … sliced open with a chainsaw” which was not removed by the social media platform’s algorithm. The committee has been looking into the harm faced by people on social media, impacts on mental health and the extent algorithms used by social media platforms permit, increase or reduce online harm.

The inquiry has explored the toxic effects of online harm.

Ms Wicks reflected on her role as chair of the committee and said it was a “great privilege”.

“I’m blown away by the bravery … people have shared really difficult and horrific experiences,” she said.

“They are using their voice to speak up to say ‘it’s not okay and we want to make a change’.”

The Committee heard from victims of online abuse along with various tech companies including Meta (Facebook), Google and YouTube, looking at content policies versus experiences of people who have voiced their concerns about getting content removed.

“It just seems like it’s worlds apart and I can see the importance of this inquiry,” Ms Wicks said.

“At the end of the day we want children – as well as adults – to be safe online. Safety is paramount.”

Ms Wicks said when she was asked to chair the inquiry she didn’t think twice, having an interest in mental health and toxic abuse as well as personal experiences which relate to online harm.

Australian media personality Erin Molan giving evidence at the public hearing.

Ms Wicks said media personality Erin Molan gave powerful evidence during the public hearings. The sports presenter revealed that online trolling made her scared to go outside with one message threatening to kill her unborn baby. She told the inquiry that the message was not deemed inappropriate content by the social media platform.

Ms Wick said Ms Molan’s evidence also shed light that while there were support systems and avenues available to certain people to get content removed, how do everyday people deal with online harm.

“If you don’t have that access, how do get things resolved,” Ms Wicks said.

“My personal view is that it needs to be easy for people to resolve abuse and complaints online.”

She said she was struck by conversations with tech giants around what was considered harmful content.

Ms Wicks could not reveal any of the committee’s recommendations however said they were committed to delivering results and enhancing online safety.

Ms Wicks was keen to hear from tech giants how people report content and get it removed.

“We want to make sure stories of the past do not become stories of the future,” she said.

During the public hearings, Ms Wicks questioned a range of witnesses including Meta’s Australian and New Zealand regional director of policy Mia Garlick.

“Sadly, we’ve seen over the last couple of years that the nature of commentary, particularly about female public figures, has become incredibly abusive and quite sexualised,” Ms Garlick told the hearing.

“So over the last couple of years we’ve made a number of changes to our policies, particularly in relation to public figures, to try to remove gendered abuse and sexualised commentary of that nature.”

Mia Garlick have evidence at the hearings. Picture: Supplied

When Ms Wicks asked how everyday people can have harmful content removed.

“All pieces of content on the service have the capability to be reported to us,” Ms Garlick said.

“There’s a little dropdown arrow on the top right on most pieces of content. That’s the best way for an individual to report that content to us. That then goes to our teams of reviewers. I think we have made progress with the proactive detection technology, but there’s still more work to be done to continue to expand what it can achieve.”

She said content is reviewed using a combination of technology and human review.

The inquiry will be extended until March 15, giving the committee time to speak directly to children who wish to discuss their experiences, concerns and ideas about online safety for Australian kids.

The inquiry has been extended to speak with Australian children.

“This is an important extension that will ensure that young people returning to school have further opportunities to contribute to this important national conversation,” Ms Wicks said.

“Although Australia is leading the world in many aspects of online safety, technology moves quickly, so there is always more we need to do.

“Young Australians know better than anyone the good and the bad when it comes to the online world, and its beyond time that big social media listens to them and ensures their platforms are safe – for this generation, and the many to come.

“I would encourage young people in all communities across Australia who wish to make a submission about their experiences with social media to use their voice to make a difference.”

Submissions are open from February 15 at https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Social_Media_and_Online_Safety/SocialMediaandSafety