By Rachel Dammala

Copyright deccanchronicle

Hyderabad:The video of American activist Charlie Kirk being shot in the neck travelled across feeds within minutes this week, reaching Hyderabad’s phones as quickly as those in Utah. For many parents here, it was a stark reminder that children’s timelines are not immune to violent news — and that shielding them completely is no longer realistic.“It popped up on my son’s screen before I could even explain what happened,” said Anjali Verma, a mother of two children aged four and eight from Madhapur. “He wasn’t searching for it. It just came through a friend’s group chat.”Counsellors say such moments unsettle both children and parents. “The instinct is to protect, but silence creates more fear,” explained child psychologist Dr. Meera Raghavan. “It’s better to ask what they’ve seen, hear their version, and then gently correct misinformation.”However, some children admitted that they felt confused. “I thought it was like a movie clip at first,” said a 12-year-old from Somajiguda. “But then I realised it was real, and that made it scary.”Parents observed that while children often see shootings and fights in films — particularly in recent violent Tollywood flicks — the shock comes from knowing that this incident was not staged.Older parents recalled a different kind of struggle. A 33-year-old mother in Malakpet, who was a schoolgirl during the 2007 Mecca Masjid blast, remembered being kept in the dark. “There was no Internet then. Adults told us very little. I carried that confusion for years. I don’t want my child to face the same silence,” said Farheen Jabeen.Experts warn that the challenge today is not lack of information but an overload of it. “Algorithms don’t distinguish between reliable news and rumours edited for clicks,” said Hyderabad-based cyber expert Arvind Rao. “We must assume children will be exposed and teach them how to question what they see.”Families are responding with small but practical steps — turning off autoplay, muting sensational accounts, and making it safe for children to hand over the phone without being scolded. “I told my daughter, if you feel uneasy, just give me the phone. We’ll look at it together,” said Beulah Grace M., a parent from Tolichowki.Mental-health professionals advise parents to be consistent with reassurance, especially before bedtime. If children show signs of distress, families can call Tele-Manas (14416) or Childline (1098) for round-the-clock support.As one parent summed up after a family discussion sparked by the Kirk video: “I can’t stop the world from reaching my kids’ screens. But I can sit with them and show them they don’t have to face it alone.”