‘It felt hypocritical’: child internet safety campaign accused of censoring teenagers’ speeches

Exclusive: Childnet, a UK charity part-funded by US tech firms, edited out warnings by two young speakers at its 2024 Safer Internet Day event

An internet safety campaign backed by US tech companies has been accused of censoring two teenagers they invited to speak out about the biggest issues facing children online.

Childnet, a UK charity part-funded by companies including Snap, Roblox and Meta, edited out warnings from Lewis Swire and Saamya Ghai that social media addiction was an imminent threat to our future" and obsessive scrolling was making people sick", according to a record of edits seen by the Guardian.