have been watching your every move as
the tributes flow in for Caroline Flack
there is anger to the former love island
presenter has become the third death
connected with the ITV show in the last
20 months but her friend and fellow
presenter said today that the show is
not the problem it's the trolls and the
tabloids she loved to laugh and had the
most infectious chuckle she also had
many struggles I'm not gonna pretend
that she was perfect but as anyone she
lived every mistake publicly under the
scrutiny of the media to the press the
newspapers who create clickbait who
demonize and tear down success we've had
enough Caroline Flack had been forced to
step down from presenting love island as
she was due to stand trial in the
high-profile domestic violence case
she'd pleaded not guilty to the charge
of an assault although her boyfriend
wasn't supporting the prosecution on
Friday miss flack found out the court
case would continue anyway today her
agents appeared to blame the CPS for her
death the Crown Prosecution Service
should look at themselves today and how
they pursued a show trial that was not
only without merit but not in the public
interest and ultimately resulted in
significant distress to Caroline this
was not a show trial this was a case
like any other domestic abuse case like
this thousand a day that the Crown
Prosecution Service prosecute I don't
know what the evidence is but I'm
guessing it was 909 calls it was body
worn camera by the police there would
have been medical evidence there were
there being evidence from police
officers who attended the scene
potentially an interview as well others
have been pointing the finger at ITV
this from the executive editor of the
Sun Caroline was hung out to dry by ITV
she was distraught they didn't stand by
her and distraught by the lack of
support she was given and yet social
media users point out the Sun newspaper
was leading salacious coverage of her
case this is a mild example we've chosen
not to show the more egregious pages at
least one story has since been taken
down online but even some of ITV's own
presenters are now questioning the
future of love Island Eamonn Holmes
called for repercussions out of respect
honey Lancaster James worked as a
psychologist on an early series of love
island although she didn't know Caroline
Flack personally it's often very hard
for people who are public figures to
actually express how hard they find it
because they find that then they get a
backlash saying well what have you got
to complain about or you put yourself in
this arena as if the fact that you work
in entertainment somehow means that the
gloves come off ITV has said it is
shocked and saddened by this desperately
sad news not for the first time a
broadcaster finds itself plagued by
questions of responsibility amid a
tragic death that's mom Angie reporting
and if you've been affected by the
issues raised in that story support is
available go to channel 4 comm slash
support
well I'm joined now by Natasha Devyn
mental health campaigner and author
thanks very much for coming in I mean
first and foremost this is an enormous
tragedy for Caroline flax family's
family and friends and all the people
who loved her yeah and to be clear I
didn't know Caroline personally I don't
know about the specific circumstances
that led to her death and it's probably
upsetting maybe even damaging for the
people who knew her to speculate but we
do know suicide is a symptom and it
happens when pain exceeds resources for
coping with pain and in about 90% of
cases it happens as a result of
untreated depression or addiction having
said all of that I think with Caroline's
case specifically there's a real
opportunity here to learn something
about the world that we live in and I
think it's interesting the way that
people have been passing the buck blame
has been apportioned on all sides
whereas in fact that blame needs to be
shared and we all need to think about
what we can do to change the environment
I mean her friend Laura Whitmore today
in a really powerful piece on radio
spoke about the intense scrutiny that
Caroline Flack had faced from the press
and social media - and that is a lot of
pressure on a young woman who was
clearly struggling I mean to be clear I
think no matter the gender of the person
if somebody has experienced domestic
abuse they should be supported and it's
ludicrous to suggest that a domestic
abuse
where their substantive evidence should
be dropped because the victim no longer
wants to give evidence because that
rewards coercive behavior but outside of
that there was this show trial going on
and the way that the tabloids and social
media sensationalized it turned it into
a circus was absolutely disgusting and
to see some of the perpetrators of that
today expressing their sadness is real
hypocrisy I mean the press of course is
supposed to be regulated and there are
many people who will have looked at the
coverage that Caroline Flack faced and
Phil it's that regulation is not working
but what do you do about social media
because it is a free-for-all people feel
that they can say what they like well I
think we have on on social media a
number of professional trolls who are
really setting the tone and you see them
I'm not going to name their names but we
all know who they are who today are
talking about how tragic they find
Caroline slacks deaths but at the same
time are bullying people like Jameela
Jamil Megan Markel Katie Price people
who we know are going through and
emotionally and mentally turbulent time
we need to starve them of oxygen we live
in an attention economy where our quicks
and our engagement are the new currency
we need to stop following and engaging
with those people it's not for the
social media companies it's for us
individually the social media companies
have a responsibility to but more and
more the tone of media and of social
media is being set by what we engage
with and so we as individuals need to
take responsibility I mean Caroline in
what is now a particularly poignant
Instagram post wrote be nice to people
you never know what's going on I'm
assuming you would say that's good
advice I think it was really poignant
when she posted in a world where you can
be anything be kind and of course she
was very successful as we heard the
psychologist say in the piece that that
can actually make people have less
sympathy for you think you're fair game
and mental health issues are equal
opportunity they affect people from all
walks of life you never know somebody's
pain and distress behind closed doors so
we should try always to treat people
with kindness and attested Evon on that
notes thank you very much for coming in
thank you