Prince Harry is speaking out about the dangers of online harassment almost two years after he and Meghan Markle sued UK tabloids for “bullying” her in their coverage. Now, Harry is talking about the situation, and how it applies to the social media landscape in a broader sense.
In an interview with Fast Company, Harry was asked why “healthier social media” was important to him, and he got very candid with his answer. Keep reading for all the details.
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During their conversation, the interviewer asked Harry, "Why is this topic so important to you? How was your outlook affected by the well-documented online harassment you and your wife have faced in the U.K.?"
Harry answered, explaining that experiencing the situation firsthand made it clear to him just how damaging online bullies can be. He explained, "I was really surprised to witness how my story had been told one way, my wife’s story had been told one way, and then our union sparked something that made the telling of that story very different."
"That false narrative became the mothership for all of the harassment you’re referring to. It wouldn’t have even begun had our story just been told truthfully," he continued.
Although Harry and Meghan might be more susceptible to online criticism (especially when they were living more in the public eye), this kind of online harassment can happen to anyone.
According to Harry, that qualifies this kind of media harassment as a "humanitarian issue." He explained, "We are all vulnerable to it, which is why I don’t see it as a tech issue, or a political issue—it’s a humanitarian issue."
Prince Harry added, "What happens online does not stay online—it spreads everywhere, like wildfire: into our homes and workplaces, into the streets, into our minds. The question really becomes about what to do when news and information sharing is no longer a decent, truthful exchange, but rather an exchange of weaponry."
"There has to be accountability to collective wellbeing, not just financial incentive. It’s hard for me to understand how the platforms themselves can eagerly take profit but shun responsibility," he continued.
This idea of having these companies take accountability for their words and what they perpetuate is not new for Harry.
In October 2019, he issued a statement about the topic and used similar language. At the time, he wrote, "There comes a point when the only thing to do is to stand up to this behaviour, because it destroys people and destroys lives. Put simply, it is bullying, which scares and silences people. We all know this isn’t acceptable, at any level. We won’t and can’t believe in a world where there is no accountability for this."
