Should websites be forced to remove videos or images you don't like?

At first, when I saw your question and not the description, I was like “No, websites should be able to post whatever they want.” and then I clicked on your question and was like “uh, yes they definitely should take that down.”
I thought about it for a bit and I realized that although I would want them to take it down, I can’t force them to. I would think that them posting that is absolutely sick and disgusting and yes, my first instinct would be to contact whoever to tell them to take that down. But if I do get them to take that down, I could probably find 5 other websites who posted that same video, and if I got them to take it down, I’d probably discover 10 more websites.I’d probably take a break from using the internet until enough time has gone by where the websites would have moved on to some other new sick thing. I’d be very traumatized seeing this type of thing on the internet of my daughter, but it would be impossible to get every website that posted the video to take it down. It’s like the FBI trying to take down Child porn websites. They take one down, and 100 more show up. There is tons of websites dedicated to gore and it would definitely be very sickening knowing I could never get every site to take the video down.

I’d like to add that I do not have a daughter, so I can say I wouldn’t try to force every website to take it down or take the matter up with the police now, but If I was in that situation I cannot say for sure how I would react. I might try to get everyone to take that down and I’d be incredibly upset, or I might disconnect my internet forever, but this isn’t a thing happening to me so I can think about it in a way that isn’t influenced by personal feelings.

I hope I don’t come off as saying I wouldn’t care or not try to get them to take it down in this situation, If I did do that, I would realize quickly that it isn’t possible. I would care if someone was posting that, and like I said, I’d be seriously traumatized.

I’m all for freedom of expression but there are limits IMO. Horrible images of death, suicide, depraved pornography should be banned IMO. It is just not necessary for anyone to view such images. That said however, inspite of this girls mental heath issues clearly she wanted to film her suicide for whatever reasons, attention, drama, to guilt her surviving family members, friends etc.

If I were going to kill myself I certainly wouldn’t wish to leave a video behind. There is just no accounting for the reasoning of the mentally ill. The internet is an amazing universe but it has gone too far in many ways if you ask me. I would think that parents of a minor child should be able to request the removal of such content.

If the person is an adult that might be a different story but still, the question in my mind remains, WHY? Why would you film your own suicide to begin with and WHY would anyone want to watch such horror unfold?

I don’t think the suicide is the question – that’s somewhat of a red herring.

The fundamental question is – does anyone have a right to ask that any video, article, or whatever be taken down.

My answer – with one important but narrow exception – is NO. The ONLY exception is something like this situation. And even then, I am not sure that the website has any obligation to do so, because it comes to the question of : Where do you draw the line?

Examples:

a) say that I am a bank robber, was arrested, mug shots taken, and put on a website. I have no right to ask anyone to take down that picture, even though it reflects me in an undesirable position.

b) i see a video or a picture of my mother in law wearing a hideous green muu-muu. It’s embarrassing. None of us – you, me, or her, or the guy down the street – has any authority to ask anyone to take it down, and the website can perfectly legitimately say no.

That’s one of the reasons why the French Right to be Forgotten laws are so dangerous. They attempt to deny history.

I’m sorry for the parents, but a fact is a fact, and the kid killing herself will continue to be a fact whether the video is up or not.

“Don’t like” is not appropriate phrasing as it applies to a verity of harmless content that is protected by the first amendment right to free speech. Ex. Plenty of folks don’t like ‘50 Shades of Grey’ (myself included).

That being said, exploiting graphic material of inarguably disturbing and offensive subjects without raising awareness context (in some cases not even then) or for amusement such as hate crimes, animal abuse, suicide, or rape is disrespectful and disgusting.

Most, content, however, is up for question as everyone draws their own line, not all moral issues with some content are the responsibility of the website displaying it and opinions can’t overrule rights.

Example 1: Racist individuals will consider a photo of an interracial couple offensive even if there is nothing inappropriate occurring in the photo.

Example 2: While it might be TMI/gross for a mother to post a photo of her husband comforting their ill 4-year-old boy in the shower even in a censored position on Facebook, (which is a real example, I came across an article on Yahoo about how it blew up with criticism) because it’s her own family, she had every right to do so.

Example 3: If, say, she didn’t have her husband’s permission to post the photo, that’s disrespectful but not in a manner that concerns Facebook.

Example 4: Photos of a plasticized beauty pageant child posted on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or Pinterest will be seen by many as immoral and dehumanizing but it’s not legally wrong and every mother has a right to raise their child the way she prefers as long as the child isn’t being physically harmed. The social media would have every right to allow these photos.

This video of a girl committing suicide, if she filmed it herself it can be argued that she wanted it publicized, inarguable if she said anything before acting particularly if she specified for someone to post it, perhaps to show those who pushed her over the edge what they’d done.
Perhaps it was the mother who posted it, who wanted her daughter’s aggressor’s to feel guilty and/or to exploit her as a PSA. Or even just to whore sympathy.

Does whether or not there was a specified request from the victim to post the video make a difference? Was it a legitimate PSA or personal revenge? Again that’s up to personal perception.

In addition, regardless of audience response the events depicted in the content are fact and in the past. Nothing can recant or undo them.

Anything related to a minor. We have strict laws here when it comes to Web privacy for minors. I think that is a good thing. Most privacy things, even for adults should be upheld. Different perhaps for public figures, but I’m not sure we all need to see graphic images involving private moments in the lives of individuals without their consent.

If I were king of the world, there would be a whole lotta changes around here. But I’m not, goddamnit. I can’t control bad taste. I can’t take computers away from people who promote and profit from that portion of the population who enjoy the things I despise and am convinced make this world a worse place for being here. I can’t do that. It’s impossible. So, the best I can do is not go to those ghettos on the net. I won’t discuss them beyond expressing my abhorrence and I won’t give them the attention that makes them grow.

It’s the best any one of us can do.

I agree with @Espiritus_Corvus approach in not patronizing the scum on the internet. That said I do support putting age appropriate blocks on specific content as IMO kids should not have unfettered access to a lot of awful content on the web.