Meghan Markle slams 'cruel' social media toxicity days before Instagram relaunch
In less than a day, Meghan has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers on her new Instagram page, but only days beforehand, she opened up about her conflicted feelings on social media. Her new venture - American Riviera Orchard - comes after years of speculation that Meghan might return to the lifestyle space, after running a successful blog, The Tig, for years before she met Prince Harry.
The Tig and Meghan's personal Instagram account were both closed down when she became engaged to Harry, and whilst the couple had official social media accounts during their tenure as working royals, this new page marks Meghan's official return to the app since the Sussexes left the UK in 2020. However, the Duchess has been open about the fact she has mixed feelings about social media, to say the least.
Speaking at a panel at SXSW, Meghan broke down exactly why social media can be toxic and simultaneously incredible sources of education and information and why she keeps her "distance from it".
"I keep my distance from it right now just for my own well-being," she explained, "But the bulk of the bullying and abuse I was experiencing in social media and online was when I was pregnant with Archie and with Lily. You think about that, to really wrap your head around why people would be so hateful. It's not catty, it's cruel."
Meghan returned to social media with her new venture (americanrivieraorchard)Meghan acknowledged, however, that these platforms also provide access to information and important discussions as well, but that this upside doesn't mean that the problematic and often toxic sides of social media don't need to be tackled, and called for women working in tech to help implement "systemic" change.
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"This [panel] is being streamed on one of those platforms, people are going to have access to all of this brilliance and insight," the Duchess of Sussex noted, per Rolling Stone.
"At the same time, it's a platform that has quite a bit of hate and rhetoric and incentivises people to create pages where they can churn out very inciting comments and conspiracy theories that can have a tremendously negative effect on somebody's mental health, their physical safety."
Meghan expressed conflicting feelings about social media at the panel (Getty Images)
She wore a stunning black gown in her first post (americanrivieraorchard)Meghan's comment came at a time when her royal in-laws are struggling to deal with the realities of intense social media speculation. With many platforms offering the option to monetise content, the more sensationalist material people post - however unfounded - the more money they are able to make from their posts.
With Kate recovering in private from abdominal surgery and not being seen since Christmas, speculation has been rife about the status of her health, marriage, and whereabouts online - despite the fact that Kensington Palace said the Princess of Wales would be away from public life until Easter. Things reached a fever pitch when an official photograph of Kate and her three children was released and news agencies quickly issued a "kill notice" recalling it, on the grounds of suspected "manipulation".
Meghan has previously called Kate a "good person" and expressed disapproval of the divisive way the two women are regularly compared, saying "So much of what I have seen play out is this idea of polarity, where if you love me, you don't have to hate her. And if you love her, you don't need to hate me."
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