Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the world wide web, has called on social networks to do more to tackle gender inequality online.
Speaking at the launch of a report looking into the social impact of the web, Berners-Lee said the promotion of controversial ideas was fuelling a rise in gender-based violence.
"When you look at Twitter, people tend to retweet things which are more extreme," he said. "You don't see people retweeting things that are a really balanced opinion. Twitter is an environment that is emotionally charged." He also called on more accountability to be put in place for those who express such views.
Equal-rights campaigners have been threatened on Twitter with violence and sexual assault in the past, whileOlympic gold-medal winner Jessica Ennis-Hill received rape threats after suggesting she would end her association with Sheffield United if the football club re-signed convicted rapist Ched Evans.
New figures released by the computer scientist's foundation show that in more than 70 per cent of countries surveyed, users felt law-enforcement agencies and the courts were failing to take appropriate action when the web was part of the violence.
