In our age of social media, it's hard to find anyone who's not tweeting, Facebook Messengering, WhatsApping, whatever. That the royals are basically the only people on Earth not constantly tapping their keyboards isn't lost on me, or pretty much anyone else. As for Prince William, he has hesitations about bringing tablets and social media into the lives of his children, saying that phones might not be all they're cracked up to be.
In a speech for Anti-Bullying Week with the BBC and his wife Kate Middleton, William touched upon the threats and dangers lurking behind the screen. "I saw that my friends and peers were worried about the risks of the very powerful tools we were putting in our children's hands," William shared.
"For too many families, phones and social media shattered the sanctity and protection of the home," he added. "As we grappled with this, we felt a distinct absence of guidance. Should we read our children's messages? Should we allow them to have phones and tablets in their rooms? Who do we report bullying to? We were making up the rules as we went along."
After the birth of Prince George, the Prince convened he Taskforce on the Prevention of Cyberbullying, and it's lovely that he's so passionate about this topic. All he wants is to make the internet "safer and happier for our young people," and acknowledges that that might be a little bit...simple for how complicated a notion that is.
To me, the most important part of his speech was when William noted that technology companies "still have a great deal to learn about the responsibilities that come with their significant power." Yaaaas, William! Hold them accountable!!
William wasn't afraid to say that social media has its positive traits: Reconnecting with people, being able to discover new and innovative forms of media like music and film. But he also pointed out that social media also has its bad traits–being used to organize violent engagements, conspiracy-spreading, hate speech, and cyberbullying amongst children, to name just some.
Also, it looks like Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis won't have personal Twitter accounts, right?
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