Prince Charles has spoken about the impact social media can have on young people, saying it makes them feel "inadequate". The 70-year-old raised concerns about the way sites like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook can affect children’s mental health because they compare themselves to "other people they see on social media".
The Prince of Wales made the comments during a speech at the Prince’s Trust Invest in Futures event on Thursday, which was attended by stars including Geri Halliwell, Phillip Schofield and Felicity Kendall.
Prince Charles said social media makes young people feel "inadequate"
It’s unlikely then that Charles would approve of his grandchildren – Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, plus Prince Harry and Meghan’s baby – signing up to social networks when they’re older, even in a private capacity.
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Neither Charles, nor other senior members of the royal family including his sons Princes William and Harry have their own personal social media profiles. Meanwhile, the Duchess of Sussex has revealed how much better she feels since deleting her own accounts before marrying Harry in May 2018. Speaking with a surfing community group on Bondi Beach during the Duke and Duchess royal tour of Australia in October, Meghan said it had been "freeing" no longer using the sites.
The Prince of Wales is a doting grandparent to Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis
However, Princess Eugenie is an active Instagram user, and often uses her profile to share details about her family’s charity work, as well as sharing sweet throwback photos from her childhood with Prince Andrew, Sarah Ferguson and Princess Beatrice. The 28-year-old is allowed to have an active social media presence because she isn’t a working member of the royal family.
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Although royals including the Duchess of Sussex and Duchess of Cambridge don’t have social media accounts of their own, there is an official channel to share their news via Kensington Palace. However, HELLO! revealed in January that palace staff are spending hours each week moderating sexist and racist comments directed at the Duchesses, and launched the #HelloToKindness campaign in a bid to champion positivity online.
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