King Philippe warns about social media

In a televised speech yesterday, Belgium's King Philippe addressed the people of Belgium and warned of the superficiality of social media, less than two hours after he had opened his own Facebook page, report various Belgian media. 

King Philippe expressed his concerns in a speech to mark the national holiday on Tuesday. He took advantage of the opportunity to talk about some of the potential negative consequences of social media, including superficial contact with other people. "Rather than the ephemeral and superficial contacts in the virtual world of the internet, we need true and deep relationships that encourage the development of personality and a critical mind so that everyone can find their own place in society."

He described a world of "hyper-connectivity", pointing to social media and the rapid developments of the internet. He acknowledged the benefits but stressed the drawbacks: "In the virtual world, time and space barely exist and that can lead us to want everything immediately."