Driven to Suicide by Facebook: The Dark Side of Social Media

Everyone has perfect bodies, lives fulfilled lives in stylish houses surrounded by beautiful friends and family. Everyone shows off and everyone judges. But this irresistible quest for recognition can quickly turn into addiction, wreaking havoc on our mental health. And teenagers are the most susceptible. In this film, we examine the real dangers of the “happycracy” promoted on social networks and hear from some of its young victims. Danny was 14 when he posted his first selfie on Facebook. But it didn’t get many ‘likes’, leading him to take more and more in a desperate attempt to secure the approval of others. Soon he was taking hundreds of selfies a day. He stopped eating in an attempt to perfect his body and lost 12 kg. Then he dropped out of school and spent six months unable to leave the house, believing that he was so ugly, people would be afraid of him. Desperate, he tried to kill himself. It was only when Danny stopped using social networks that he was able to slowly recover. His is an extreme story but with the invention of the “like” and the idea of “self branding”, where everything must be validated by others to be real, the creators of social networks are changing our behaviours. Marie, 22 and with 4922 followers, is terrified of disappointing her subscribers. So she spends one day a week perfecting an image of living the perfect Parisian life. Hours doing her make-up and taking hundreds of photos to create the one image she will post. She breaks down in front of the camera and confides how vulnerable she feels and how desperate she is to be liked. --- SUBSCRIBE for more amazing stories, including free FULL documentaries. At Java Films we have an incredible library of award-winning documentaries: from world-leading investigations to true crime and history, we have something for everyone! Click the SUBSCRIBE button and make sure to set NOTIFICATIONS to stay updated with all new content! Sign up to the Java Films Clubs for exclusive deals and discounts for amazing documentaries - find out first about FREE FULL docs: Head to to check out our catalogue of documentaries available on Demand. You can also find our docs on : Amazon Prime Video: Vimeo On Demand: Like us on Facebook: Follow us on Twitter: Follow us on Instagram: