THERE is something deeply unsettling about the direction social media culture is taking in Zimbabwe.
A quick scroll through any platform reveals a pattern that is becoming hard to ignore.
Adults are arguing in public, private matters are laid bare and insults are no longer exchanged in private spaces but in front of audiences.
In some cases, explicit images are shared, sometimes in anger, sometimes for attention and sometimes without any thought about the consequences.
It is dramatic and, for many, entertaining. It attracts views, comments and followers. In some cases, it even brings financial gain. But while this is happening, a quieter, far more serious story is unfolding in the background. Children are watching and more importantly, they are inheriting what we leave behind.
We have created a culture where everything is content. Pain becomes content, conflict becomes content and exposure becomes content. Somewhere along the way, we stopped asking who else may be affected by what we share.
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Adults across contexts are engaging in online behaviour that ignores children's presence and well-being. Arguments are no longer private. Followers are drawn into personal conflicts. Boundaries are blurred. In some instances, explicit images are shared in ways that can easily reach unintended audiences.
Children do not experience this as entertainment. They experience it as their reality.
Child protection expert Rumbidzai Marevegwa warns that the implications are far-reaching. She explains that when adults expose private matters or engage in harmful behaviour online, children become secondary victims. Even when the content is not directed at them, it affects their sense of safety, identity and dignity. She emphasises that children have a right to privacy and protection from emotional harm and that these online behaviours undermine those rights.
A youthful worker in Mbare echoed this concern, noting that we are raising children in a digital environment that adults themselves are not managing responsibly. Adults are doing whatever they want online, yet children are left to process and make sense of it. In many cases, they simply cannot.
What makes the situation more serious is the permanence of the internet. Posts may be deleted, but screenshots remain. Videos are downloaded and reshared. Content spreads far beyond its original audience. What may feel like a temporary moment for an adult can become a permanent record for a child.
For adults, this may seem like something to move on from. For children, it becomes part of their story.
Imagine growing up and discovering that your parents’ most private moments are circulating online. Imagine classmates finding that content. Imagine being questioned or judged for something you had no control over. This is not just embarrassing. It can be deeply damaging.
Social worker Hazel Shambambeva highlights the emotional toll this can take. She notes that children thrive in environments where they feel protected and respected. When their family life becomes a public spectacle, it can lead to shame, anxiety and withdrawal. In some cases, it affects their ability to trust others and to form healthy relationships.
A parent who reflected on their own experience admitted that in the moment, it feels like you are simply expressing yourself or defending your position. However, the reality is that children will still be there years later, dealing with the consequences of what was posted.
This is where the conversation needs to shift. This is not only about personal expression. It is about responsibility.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child makes it clear that children have a right to privacy, dignity and protection from harm, including emotional harm. These are not abstract ideas. They are obligations that apply to all adults and to society as a whole. Yet our online behaviour increasingly contradicts these principles.
What you post does not end with you. It travels, it spreads and it stays. One day, you may move on, log off or no longer be present, but your children will remain. They will be the ones facing questions, dealing with judgement and carrying a digital history they did not create.
They will have to deal with it as individuals.
An educator, Sharmaine Mponda, observes that these issues are already visible in schools. She explains that some children are distracted, distressed or even teased because of what is circulating online about their families. What children experience at home and online follows them into the classroom and affects their learning and well-being.
There is also the question of what we are modelling. Children learn by observing adults. When they see adults resolving conflicts through public insults, they begin to see disrespect as normal. When they see explicit content being used for attention, they begin to associate exposure with validation. When boundaries are ignored, they grow up without clear boundaries themselves.
In this way, we are not only shaping online culture. We are shaping the next generation.
It is important to acknowledge that freedom of expression matters. People have the right to speak, to share and to tell their stories. However, rights come with responsibility, particularly when children are involved.
Not everything needs to be posted. Not every argument needs an audience. Not every moment of anger needs to be turned into public content. Choosing restraint is not a sign of weakness. It is an act of protection.
This responsibility does not lie solely with individuals. Society also plays a role. Content spreads because people engage with it. We share, comment and amplify. In doing so, we shape what becomes normal and acceptable.
Before posting, there is a simple but important question to ask. If a child connected to me sees this today or years from now, what will it do to them? Will it protect them or expose them? Social media moves quickly, but consequences do not. What we post today can shape a child’s tomorrow in ways we may not fully understand.
- Simbarashe Kanyimo is a researcher at the Africa University Child Rights Research Centre. He writes in his personal capacity.