Prince Harry appears tearful as he makes surprise emotional outing

Prince Harry appeared emotional at an event in Los Angeles as he joined British families who have said they lost their children as a result of social media. 

The Duke of Sussex, 41, thanked everyone for attending and tearfully told them: “None of you should be here.” It is thought that the event took place on Wednesday night and that Harry was joined by his wife, Meghan Markle. 

In an impassioned speech that was filmed and shared on BBC Breakfast, Harry said: “None of you should be here. Thank you for doing everything that you’ve done. Thank you for telling your stories over and over again.

“Truth, justice and accountability. Those are the three things that will come from this.” The outing comes amid a major legal case to examine the mental health impact of social media giants Instagram and YouTube. 

Harry also referenced his own time in court, which includes a case about his security while in the UK, and an ongoing privacy case against the publisher of the Daily Mail. He made it clear that this was “vastly different” and called it a “David versus Goliath” situation. 

The Prince continued: “When you were sitting in court and if you have that feeling of just overwhelming emotion because you can’t believe that the people on the other side are saying what they’re saying, that by the very nature of them defending what they’re defending, the lies that they are stating, is devaluing life, is devaluing your children’s lives, if that brings stuff up for you, it is totally normal.

“Do not feel ashamed, do not feel concerned. Even if the judge – as I heard – turned round and asked you not to show emotion.”

Harry and Meghan’s powerful statement

Elsewhere on Thursday, Harry and Meghan released a powerful statement about the harms of social media – calling it a “pivotal” time. “Families devastated by online harm have waited too long for this moment,” they wrote in the essay, which was shared to their website, sussex.com. 

Harry and Meghan referenced their Parents’ Network, a growing community supporting those who are facing the consequences of cyberbullying and “manipulation”.  

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The statement, which referenced the court case in the US, concluded: “We invite you to support these brave families and parents who have paid the ultimate cost in losing a child, yet who still stand strong and ready to fight for the rights of other families, championing their efforts as they advocate for the protection of all children online.” Harry and Meghan themselves share two children, Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, four. 

What is the case against social media companies?

Lawsuits are being brought against Meta, YouTube, Snap Inc and TikTok by those who claim these platforms severely affected their mental health when they were children. Snapchat and TikTok reached settlements before the trial began. 

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Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, claimed that excessive use of social media does not equate to an addiction. He said: “It’s important to differentiate between clinical addiction and problematic use. I’m sure I’ve said that I’ve been addicted to a Netflix show when I binged it really late one night, but I don’t think it’s the same thing as clinical addiction.”

The case is expected to last for six weeks. It is the first jury trial examining whether social media companies have deliberately designed their platforms to make children addicted, examining features such as the capacity for “infinite” scrolling and manipulative algorithms.