King Charles agrees with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on key issue

King Charles has voiced his concerns about the negative impact social media is having on young people – an issue that’s also been raised by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

King Charles is said to share the same concerns as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle when it comes to the influence social media has on young people.

Last weekend, the monarch reportedly held a 40-minute meeting at Balmoral Castle in Scotland during which he expressed his worries about how social media usage is impacting children. The meeting, between Charles and Reverend Tommy MacNeil, who runs the Shed Project mental health charity on the Isle of Lewis, was held in private.

Rev MacNeil said the King was “was very engaged and 100 per cent appreciative of the work we are doing.” He explained, “He was very concerned about the negative impact social media was having on young people in so many ways. He really understood the problems and the difficulties involved in combating them.” Both of Charles’ sons, Princes William and Harry, have previously voiced their concerns about the challenges faced by young people in the era of social media.

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The minister also highlighted how young people are today growing up in a “different world” and that the material they can access on their phones is “frightening.” He told the Daily Telegraph, “King Charles was clearly very concerned about the whole issue and negative influences on young people from social media. It is almost impossible to police social media, so we need to find ways to combat that.”

Harry and Meghan unveiled The Lost Screen Memorial in New York in April and called for more action to protect children from the dangers of social media. Harry told BBC Breakfast, “We want to make sure that things are changed so that… no more kids are lost to social media. Life is better off social media. The easiest thing to say is to keep your kids away from social media.”

However, he acknowledged a “sad reality”, saying children who don’t have social media face bullying as they can’t be part of the “same conversation” as others. The Lost Screen Memorial displays 50 illuminated boxes, crafted to resemble mobile phones. Each display shows a photograph of a youngster whose life was tragically ended due to the “harms of social media.”

Last year, Meghan admitted during a meeting with a group of teenagers that she felt like “one of the most bullied people in the world,” according to a charity boss. The Duchess of Sussex spent an afternoon on October 2, 2024, with Girls Inc. of Greater Santa Barbara, engaging in arts and crafts and assisting with their new digital-wellness program, Social Media U. The non-profit organization Girls Inc, which focuses on empowering girls, partnered with #HalfTheStory, a campaign aimed at improving young people’s relationship with technology, to launch the program.

Larissa May, the founder of #HalfTheStory, shared with Vanity Fair that Meghan “talked about being one of the most bullied people in the world.” She elaborated, “We did an activity where we talked through a bunch of different scenarios, and Meghan talked about being one of the most bullied people in the world. We had girls wave these little emoji signs and talk about how each one of these scenarios would have impacted them emotionally.”

Ms. May added, “We talked about what it really means to grow up in this digital age.” The goal of the Social Media U curriculum is to encourage teenagers to socialize without screens, while also teaching them how to use technology for creativity and positive interaction.

Harry’s brother William has also previously spoken about the potential negative impacts of social media, including increased bullying and the creation of a “cultural and political echo chamber.” In a 2018 speech, he warned, “We all have to acknowledge, though, that much of the early optimism and hope of social media is giving way to very real concern, and even fear about its impact on our lives.”

He said, “We have seen that the technology that can allow you to develop an online community around a shared hobby or interest can also be used to organise violence.” William added, “The platform that can allow you to celebrate diversity can also be used to cocoon yourself in a cultural and political echo chamber.”

During an appearance on Eugene Levy’s Apple TV+ series The Reluctant Traveler this week, the actor asked William whether he, Kate Middleton and their three children – Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis – eat together. He replied, “Yes absolutely, yes definitely. So, we sit and chat, it’s really important. None of our children have any phones, which we’re very strict about.”

Eugene then asked the prince what his children play with instead of phones and he said that both Louis, seven, and Charlotte, 10, love the trampoline. He joked, “As far as I can tell they just end up jumping up and down, beating each other up, most of the time. Apparently, there is an art to it.”

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