In response to growing concerns raised regarding the adverse impact of TikTok content on the mental health of young teenagers, RT 's Prime Time undertook an investigative experiment creating new TikTok accounts set to an age of 13 years. The shocking findings were revealed to viewers on Tuesday on RT One and are now available on RT Player here.
The investigation sheds light on the social media platform's potentially detrimental effects on the mental health of young teenagers as within 20 minutes, Prime Time was being shown videos directly referencing self-harm and suicidal thoughts. By the end of an hour of scrolling, TikTok's recommender system was showing a stream of videos almost exclusively related to depression, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts to the users it believed to be 13 years old.
Prime Time s experiment involved the creation of three new TikTok accounts, each set with an age of 13 years old and using separate sim cards for each new user. Without actively engaging with content or searching for specific topics, Prime Time observed the videos recommended by TikTok's algorithm.
The content was then shown to the Chair of the Faculty of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry in the College of Psychiatrists of Ireland, Dr Patricia Byrne, and Dr Richard Hogan, a psychotherapist who specialises in working with families.
I work in this area every day but even for me, seeing that was very emotional and provokes a very strong, very strong emotional reaction, Dr Patricia Byrne said. I didn't expect to feel as emotional as I did watching it, but they're very powerful imagery and very intense.
Dr. Richard Hogan, a psychotherapist specialising in working with families, described his emotional response as deflated and angry. I find myself getting emotional watching that because I work with so many brilliant teenagers, so many wonderful teenagers who have been pulled into the murky world of serious mental health issues because of things like that, he added, responding to one of the videos referencing suicide. It is absolutely suggesting suicide as a course to deal with your psychological upset there. I mean, that is, that is heinous, he told Prime Time.
The investigation's findings underscore the need for action to address the harmful impact of social media algorithms on vulnerable young users. Representatives from TikTok will today meet in front of an Oireachtas Children's Committee, while at the weekend T naiste Miche l Martin stated in his Ard Fheis speech that social media platforms must get children off their apps.
Statistics about rates of self-harm in Ireland are compiled by the National Suicide Research Foundation, however, they only cover instances which result in people attending emergency departments. Since 2002, when the foundation began collating the data, there has been an increase in the number of presentations to emergency departments by approximately 18%. What particularly concerns consultants is the high and growing numbers of teenagers presenting.
What we know is that every year the age group that has the highest rate of self-harm is those aged 15 to 19 years but of huge concern is, over recent years, the age group with the most rapid increase in rates in self-harm is those aged 10 to 14 years. And that is really a worrying sign, said Dr Patricia Byrne.
TikTok's algorithm, which drives users towards content, has come under scrutiny. Salvatore Romano, Head of Research at AI Forensics, emphasised the algorithm's role in promoting self-harm as a coping mechanism, exacerbating distress for vulnerable individuals. AI Forensics, a Portugal-based research organisation, carried out a similar exercise as part of a report examining the impact of TikTok on teens in the US, Kenya and Philippines with Amnesty International in 2023.
In response to queries from Prime Time, TikTok stated its commitment to addressing mental health issues and providing support for users in distress. However, concerns persist regarding the platform's efficacy in safeguarding young users from harmful content. After conducting the experiment, Prime Time gave TikTok the usernames of the accounts set up which allowed TikTok to have access to all the videos that had been shown to the accounts and also provided screenshots from ten example videos. Seven of these videos have since been removed however TikTok said RT 's test in no way accurately represents the behaviour or experiences of real teens who use our app Out of hundreds of videos that would've been seen during RT 's testing, we reviewed ten that were sent to us and made changes so that seven can no longer be viewed by teenagers.
The European Commission recently launched an investigation into TikTok's practices, focusing on the platform's alleged failure to adequately protect children. With TikTok's EU headquarters located in Dublin, Coimisi n na Me n, holds significant responsibility for regulating the platform's operations within the EU. Johnny Ryan, Senior Fellow at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) said: Our regulator, Coimisi n na Me n, has the power in law to tell TikTok or any other company in this same category, stop your algorithm that is hurting our kids, that is causing self-loathing, self-hate, suicide in our children. Switch that off.' And it has the power to do that.
Watch Prime Time on RT Player and read the digital report at RT .ie/Primetime.
The programme will also feature an exclusive interview with American immunologist Anthony Fauci.
Most recent headlines
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
KPop Demon Hunters Stars Visit Berklee for Weeklong Celebration Andrew Choi and EJAE, who voiced the film's main characters and contributed to its soundtr...
17/12/2025
With the new season of Dancing with the Stars shimmering in the not-too-distant future this New Year, the celebrity and dancer pairings of the twelve couples ha...
16/12/2025
Hawkins has landed on Spotify, just in time for Stranger Things Season 5, Volume...
16/12/2025
Wherever you are, your favorite music and audio content should go seamlessly with you. That's why Spotify has partnered with NAVER Corp, Korea's leading...
16/12/2025
2025 Wrapped arrived bigger and bolder than ever. This year's experience is designed to be ultra personal and shareable, with new features like Wrapped Part...
16/12/2025
Three 12-kilowatt Advanced Electric Propulsion System thrusters, supplied by L3Harris Technologies, form the core of Gateway's propulsion system. Pictured i...
16/12/2025
The challenge facing America's defense industrial base is not just about speed - its about rebuilding the foundation that makes speed possible. Our nations ...
16/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
16/12/2025
SEVILLE, Spain Canal Sur, the public broadcasting service for Andalusia, Spain, has completed a total technology refresh based on Pebble's resilient, softwa...
16/12/2025
NEW YORK Teleprompting hardware provider Telescript International has acquired all software code and intellectual property previously owned by Telescript West. ...
16/12/2025
As cable operators face increased competition from 5G fixed wireless access providers, a new report from Ookla Research finds that T-Mobile is the FWA speed lea...
16/12/2025
Apple has announced a major upgrade to the Apple TV app for device owners outside the Apple ecosystem with news that the Apple TV app for Android now supports G...
16/12/2025
Space42 grows Direct-to-Device partner ecosystem through a Memorandum of Underst...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON Announces Release Date for Full Year and Fourth Quarter 2025 R...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON's Kyivstar Invests in Renewable Energy in Ukraine with Acq...
16/12/2025
Back to All News
Emma Appleton, Fares Fares, Frida Gustavsson and Jakob Oftebro...
16/12/2025
Back to All News
Docu-reality My Korean Boyfriend Gets a Trailer and Premiere D...
16/12/2025
Harmonic's XOS Advanced Media Processor Improves Streaming Video Quality and Boosts Viewer Engagement SAN JOSE, Calif. - Dec. 16, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: ...
16/12/2025
RT Sport Awards 2025 live on RT One and RT Player at 8:05pm on Saturday 20 December.
On Saturday 20 December live on RT One and RT Player at the earlier t...
16/12/2025
Singer -songwriter Brian Kennedy has been announced as the final celebrity dance...
15/12/2025
Harlem Globetrotters Celebrate 100th Anniversary With New Brand Campaign From Th...
15/12/2025
Top L-R: La Tierra Del Valor (The Home of the Brave), Mangittatuarjuk (The Gnawe...
15/12/2025
L3Harris will leverage 15 years of experience supporting the E-4B Nightwatch and...
15/12/2025
CONWAY, Ark. In a notable example of how the loss of federal funding is forcing public stations to make massive cuts and operational changes, the statewide pub...
15/12/2025
BOULDER, Colo. Public Media Venture Group (PMVG), Venture Technologies Group (VTG), and WQED have completed a multipart agreement that they say will significant...
15/12/2025
Cape Town, November 13, 2025 - SES and International artist and humanitarian, Fo...
15/12/2025
Luxembourg, December 15, 2025 - SES, a leading space solutions company, and Abra Group launched fast and reliable multi-orbit inflight connectivity service on t...
15/12/2025
How Rivian s Design Puts Drivers First-And Why That Matters Published on Dec 15, 2025 Categories: Business Solutions
LinkedIn Corporate Communications
Sha...
15/12/2025
Space42 and Cobham Satcom completed the full range of advanced terminals for the...
15/12/2025
15 Dec 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan Delivers First Starlink Direct to Cel...
15/12/2025
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor finds himself the topic of year's cracker jokes
Oasis, David Harbour, Celebrity Traitors and Angela Rayner all feature in this y...
15/12/2025
Comscore Expands Cross-Platform Campaign Measurement to Include Audio and Social New capabilities strengthen cross-platform campaign reporting suite; CCR rebran...
15/12/2025
NVIDIA today announced it has acquired SchedMD - the leading developer of Slurm, an open-source workload management system for high-performance computing (HPC) ...
15/12/2025
RT .ie has reached one billion page views this year and is on track to finish 2025 2% ahead of last year. Average time spent on the site is up 3% on 2024, with ...
15/12/2025
Modern workflows showcase the endless possibilities of generative and agentic AI on PCs.
Of many, some examples include tuning a chatbot to handle product-supp...
13/12/2025
Powering Client Growth: Horizon Deepens Nielsen Partnership, Enabling More Effic...
13/12/2025
In a move that will help it offer more flexible and less costly programming options, YouTube TV has announced that it will be launching YouTube TV Plans with mo...
13/12/2025
SINGAPORE Magna Systems has designed, built and completed what is believed to be the first full UHD and IP-based OB truck in Southeast Asia for a Singapore medi...
12/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Everything You Need to Know for Next Week's Big Sho...
12/12/2025
Hailey Gates at the Atropia premiere (photo by George Pimentel / Shutterstock for Sundance Film Festival)...
12/12/2025
Last month, Spotify announced a new collaboration with the ATP Tour, the global governing body of men's professional tennis, aimed at bringing the next gene...
In response to growing concerns raised regarding the adverse impact of TikTok content on the mental health of young teenagers, RT 's Prime Time undertook an investigative experiment creating new TikTok accounts set to an age of 13 years. The shocking findings were revealed to viewers on Tuesday on RT One and are now available on RT Player here.
