Facebook hires health expert to help prevent suicides

Facebook Inc. said it will begin sharing public data about how users talk about suicide as part of ongoing efforts to address concerns about suicide and self-harm on the social media site.

In a blog post on World Suicide Day, Facebook said it will give academic researchers access to CrowdTangle, a tool often used by news and media organisations to monitor social media, to explore how information shared on Facebook and Instagram can be used to help prevent suicide. The company will also include guidelines for talking about mental health by Orygen, an organization that studies youth mental health, on the platforms Safety Centre and hire a health expert to join its safety team.