King Charles's New Effort to Champion Mental Health Will Likely Make Harry and Meghan Super Proud
Trigger Warning: This article contains themes of suicide that some readers may find distressing
King Charles found himself echoing the same concerns that have long troubled Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. At Balmoral Castle on September 28, the monarch spoke privately with Reverend Tommy MacNeil on the negative influence of social media on children, and the challenges of ‘combating’ it. His remarks mirrored Harry and Markle’s views from April, when they spoke out against cyberbullying and the loss of life from it.
MacNeil heads the Shed Project, a charity centred around mental health on the Scottish island of Lewis. Recalling his conversation with the King, he told The Telegraph, "We spoke for 40 minutes and the King was clearly well briefed about the Shed and what we are doing. 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." Macneil highlighted how young people are growing up in a ‘different world’ and the content accessible on their phones is ‘frightening.’ He added, "He [Charles] was very engaged and 100 per cent appreciative of the work we are doing."
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Charles’s concerns about the harmful effects of social media would surely make Harry and Markle accross the pond, given that they too highlighted the same during a memorial in New York City, dedicated to children who took their lives after cyberbullying. The installation, named the Lost Screen Memorial, was made of 50 smartphone-shaped light boxes, each holding a photograph of a child lost. During the event, Harry said, "Social media is quietly taking our children, and those with the power to make change are failing to act. We want to make sure that things are changed so that... no more kids are lost to social media," adding that he was 'grateful' that his children were too young to be online.
Meanwhile, Markle had stressed, "It is a universal truth that our children are in harm’s way by what’s happening online." The Duchess of Sussex has also not shied away from opening up about her own challenges with cyberbullying. In a 2024 interview with CBS Sunday Morning, she shared, "I haven’t really scraped the surface on my experience... I would never want someone else to feel that way, and I would never want someone else to be making those sort of plans." In her Oprah Winfrey interview, she revealed that she ‘didn't want to be alive’ anymore after the barrage of negative media coverage took its toll on her.
Just like Charles, Harry, and Markle, Prince William has also pressed for tighter protections through the 'Stop, Speak, Support' campaign to combat cyberbullying. This initiative has developed a youth-led code of conduct, with trials currently underway on Snapchat and Facebook. The Prince of Wales has long criticized social media for spreading misinformation and hate speech, and advocated for implementing better systems to report fake news.
If you are having thoughts about taking your own life, or know of anyone who is, please contact The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-SUICIDE (784-2433)