Punching back was an option back in the day when a bully had to be in your face to bully you. But now, when a ton of it is cyber-bullying, that's not always an option. If this girl was getting relentlessly mocked/harassed by people she didn't even know, some of whom were boys...punching them in the face isn't even possible.
Agreed--see post 60. That is part of the problem, that people who have 'cool' on line personas can bully kids who are really far 'cooler', and have the social media herd follow them in doing so. Without the means to face their accusers or strike back, kids can't cope well with the result.
So much of a kid's development at that stage is related to feedback from people who know them, only that has changed to include, and then be overwhelmed by people who may never have said a word to them face to face.
This last election demonstrated the effectiveness of creating boogeymen via social media, and that is only one example of perpetrating and perpetuating exaggerations and outright falsehoods to the extent they become accepted by a significant number of people as "truth". From "Hands up Don't shoot", to "Lyin' Ted" to the nonsense spewed about "protecting water" at Standing Rock, this stuff can go from local to worldwide without a grain of truth, and the effects on young men and ladies trying to find their niche in the social order of things can be devastating.