Fact Check Time!
While the point of this video is that we should try to do everything we can to help empower kids to put an end to bullying, Upworthy’s in-house ruthless fact-checking squad insists that we address a few of the statistics mentioned in this piece.
Here are a few facts mentioned that require a bit more clarification:
“Kids spend an average 44.5 hours online each week.” — It would be more accurate to say this amount of content consumed by kids refers to all media, not just online.
“4,400 young people kill themselves each year.” — Sadly, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this figure is now at 4,600 per year.
“For every suicide, there are at least 100 attempts.” — While several sources do report this statistic, we couldn’t find enough data to verify it. The CDC reports there’s 25 attempts for every suicide, but that figure represents attempts made by people of all ages (not just kids).
“160,000 kids stay at home due to bullying.” — This statistic is based on a 20-year old report by the National Association of School Psychologists and is considered no longer valid.
