Duke and Duchess of Sussex, General News 2: December 2018 - February 2019


If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Status
Not open for further replies.
While I agree in some situations the don't complain, don't explain strategy still works, we are living in a different time here. With the way and speed of which information travel these days, ALL has to be nimble and agile enough in strategy. This isn't just the royal PR machine, but rest of the world as well.

The biggest problem with today is the 24/7 news cycle and need for clickbait. Once someone has a story, all other publication repeats it. For a lot of people, if it's repeated enough, then it's true. The Palace can't always be so passive about everything.

Don't get me wrong, I understand why they believe in it as it is tried and true strategy. I just think you can't stick to one method only in this day and age.

I think this is a risky move to an extent, and can only be used rarely.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I hate comparing women but really she should have taken a page from Beyonce's book who in my opinion exemplify perfectly the 'never complain, never explain'. She has it 100x worse than Meghan for those who know... and she always rise above. It has served her well. I remember the time around her pregnancy.. Meghan truly has heard nothing compared to her...

How ironic that the very person who did not want to be victimised in the media by her father is now being victimised in the media by her friends. The DoS clearly decided to take the high road and not discuss those issues publicly, her friends should have respected that decision and follow her lead.
And she has an event tonight. Poor girl.

There actually is no comparison at this stage of DoS Meghan's life. Beyonce is a living legendary diva in the public eye, and she wants to be. When it comes to OTT celebrity frenzy, Beyonce knows how to take the good with the bad and to use it skillfully for her own ends. The breaches of privacy Beyonce has been able to weather and survive is due to her inner strength, her family's unity and support, and her own deep self-knowledge. But this worldwide, larger-than-life fame is a life Beyonce sought after since she was a child. It is a life Beyonce wants and basks in. She lives large, and she has enough power accumulated to control her image at will. Beyonce can speak out publicly and via her music.

As a member of the British royal family, DoS Meghan has no such leeway, and no such full-on carefully accumulated power and public authority to independently craft and protect her own image, although Meghan too possesses deep inner self-knowledge and strength. She also has her mother, Doria's, love and support and the love and protection of her husband and her dearest friends. But Doria lives in California, and Meghan is pregnant with her first child while facing a firestorm of negativity, even as she adjusts to a peculiar life inside one of the most ancient and high profile families in the world. That's unusual and incomparable.

As Meghan said during the engagement interview, while she was a working Hollywood actor, she was not being written up in entertainment publications and tabloids during her career. Even after her modicum of success with Suits, the public notice and recognition was very gradual and limited.

You are correct that there is no comparison. The lack of substantive comparison is deeper than you think.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
If this is indeed true and these friends have had Meghan's tacit consent to speak to the media, then I think Meghan has made a real error of judgement, and probably made the situation a lot worse for herself. I can only hope that this is not the case.

This same thing happened leading up to the Cambridge engagement announcement. It was done through Hello Magazine.

I was waiting to see, Harry and Meghan, make a move on all of this. They had to.
 
Last edited:
This same thing happened leading up to the Cambridge engagement announcement. It was done through Hello Magazine.

I don't quite remember the Hello magazine story prior to the Cambridge engagement, but I do remember that, not long before the announcement, they had arrived together at a friends wedding. This was a break from their habit, at the time, of arriving and leaving separately, and had got the media chatting.

I'm not a fan of Camilla Tominey, and didn't click to read the article, but did read the bit that was published in People, and I have to say that if this information leaked by "friends" was done with the permission of the DoS, I think it is a mistake. I don't think it's a Diana-level feeding the press error, but I do think it amps up a story (the estrangement from her father) that had largely died down, and it doesn't do much to change the overall arc of the story. A dignified silence would have served her in the long term a lot better than giving friends permission to talk about something that happened, and it sets a precedent that may be harder to control in the future than it may seem on the surface.

I completely agree with you! The story about Meghan's Markle relatives was dying out, and was hardly getting any airtime. All this intervention (if it is indeed that) has done has brought the story back alive again. Bad move, IMO.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I've deleted a number of posts. As a mod noted earlier, this thread is not about the media and their treatment of Meghan. So please don't turn this latest article from People Magazine, into a discussion about the tabloids/media.

I've also deleted comments about Meghan's relationship with her father, comparisons between Kate and Meghan and a discussion about Camilla Tominey's work and her access to the royals.

And just as a reminder, the Markles are off-topic.
 
Last edited:
I don't like it when royals or their "friends" allow things like this to appear. To me royals should embody "never complain, never explain" because they do have a relatively privileged life compared to so many others.

Do we know when Meghan begins her maternity leave as such? Are there any more engagements upcoming?
 
Please note that off-topic posts / posts that add nothing substantive to the discussion have been deleted. If members are in doubt as to whether to make a post or not, please contact any of the relevant Mods who will be please to give guidance. Thank you.
 
Judging by some comments on Twitter etc one would think that Meghan had sat down and written the People article herself! This is very far from the Diana stuff that came out in the War of The Wales, which is what Meghan has been virtually accused of in some quarters.

I think that Meghan's friends are genuinely appalled by the vitriol aimed at Meghan and so several did agree to speak publicly to People, sticking up for her. This was not a particularly good idea, IMO.

However, in a 24 hour news cycle in an era of continuous Clickbait, I'm not sure that being a sitting duck and never responding to anything written, works either any more. It would have been more helpful to Meghan if a couple of her friends had agreed to be named, in this article, IMO.

I don't believe that Meghan was in charge of releasing this article, (something else she's been accused of!) IMO it was the idea of the new assistant KP communications manager.
 
Last edited:
However, in a 24 hour news cycle in an era of continuous Clickbait, I'm not sure that being a sitting duck and never responding to anything written, works either any more. It would have been more helpful to Meghan if a couple of her friends had agreed to be named, in this article, IMO.

I actually agree with how they did it. It's not hard to guess some of them. However, if they are named, it becomes about that person and their entire history. This actually kept the focus on what they are saying here. I will get the full article to tomorrow, but from what I've seen so far, this is a well organized and well thought out effort. They aren't playing around. And quite frankly, naming them wouldn't have changed some's attack, it'll just give them a named target. :lol:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Wow the People Magazine article could give a person diabetes, there’s so much sugar.

Meghan cooks for Harry, her life is devoted to helping others, she’s a devoted Christian and all around great person according to the five ‘anonymous’ sources.

Meghan is in for a long rough road as a royal if this is her response to a years worth of semi criticism.
 
My question is why do they care?
They are not mainline, they are irrelevant, they are so low on the totem pole, They are not senior royals, they have been sent to Frogmore; a graveyard, their children should not be HRH. This is the usual mantra even here. So really why do they care since they are so irrelevant.

I concur, indeed.
 
JS-P calling a spade a spade!

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...p-peddling-Princess-Perfect-story-Meghan.html


And I could not disagree!

As I said, this is not about Meghan acting in isolation. As Harry declared in their engagement interview, "Whatever we have to face, we will face together... Our relationship comes first..."

I don't see what is not understandable about this. There are sometimes staff leaks. There's also made-up or exaggerated stuff by the media. And then there are ways that the royals combat the negative and inaccurate press coverage via discreet means available to them.

Once again, Meghan is not acting on her own. I personally believe it's Harry's salvo in conjunction with Meghan's friends, as they are likely all concerned about Meghan's welfare, especially with her being pregnant and nearing her due date. I do not think she dwells on negativity, but she's dealing with a lot right now, and I see this as her husband and her friends looking out for her. Others can see it as you will.

And if Harry is involved and has sanctioned this, then I am afraid, he too clearly lacks the judgement that is needed at this stage.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
More opinion on the People Magazine article

Former Buckingham Palace press secretary Dickie Arbiter, who worked as a media manager for both Prince Charles and Princess Diana, said he feared the decision would only exacerbate issues, not contain them.

He said: ‘Assuming – and as these sources are anonymous we don’t know for sure – that this was done with her agreement, it has opened a Pandora’s Box, in my opinion. The issue with her father is an open wound and I’m not entirely sure it is the best idea to aggravate that.

‘It doesn’t entirely surprise me that the press office didn’t know, that said. Nothing changes. The first inkling we had of a story was when you read it in the Sun or the Mail.’

Joe Little, managing director of the pro-monarchy Majesty magazine, said he believed the Royal Family’s age-old mantra of ‘never complain, never explain’ was as relevant as ever.

‘These chats were clearly done with the very best of intentions but I’m inclined to think they have achieved nothing,’ he said. ‘It would have been more helpful for her friends to stuck their head above the parapet and allowed their names and identities to be revealed as it would have given credence to the stories.’
Why WAS the Palace kept in the dark over Meghan's media fightback? Royal handlers only knew article featured letter to Thomas Markle MINUTES before the piece's publication
 
Frankly if this was really done by her friends they need to name themselves. Otherwise it just adds to the swirling gossip fest. True or not true and all the arguing over that element alone.


LaRae
 
Frankly if this was really done by her friends they need to name themselves. Otherwise it just adds to the swirling gossip fest. True or not true and all the arguing over that element alone.


LaRae

Unfortunately, whether they name themselves or not, simply giving that kind of interview has already started up the swirling gossip fest, and nothing much is going to derail it. I just cannot imagine why anyone thought this was a good idea.
 
Unfortunately, whether they name themselves or not, simply giving that kind of interview has already started up the swirling gossip fest, and nothing much is going to derail it. I just cannot imagine why anyone thought this was a good idea.

Me either...if it's even true.



LaRae
 
However the result turns out to be, we shall see.

As for the notion that her friends should’ve named themselves, I didn’t see the demand for anonymous sources to name themselves in various sources many just assumed to be true at this point. And really, it’s not hard to see who they are in this case. But remain anonymous actually kept the topic on what has happened rather than the people involved.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
And if Harry is involved and has sanctioned this, then I am afraid, he too clearly lacks the judgement that is needed at this stage.

I agree with this. I have no idea if the interview was sanctioned by either Harry or Meghan, but if it was--and my best guess is that someone must have given at least tacit permission for five of Meghan's friends to give this kind of invasive detail--then it is useless for KP or Harry to complain about the invasive press coverage, and then hand all these intimate details over to the public to paw through and opine about.

One of the articles mentioned that Harry and Meghan don't like hearing advice from PR professionals. If that is true (granted, a big "if") then the People article tends to support that. I cannot believe any halfway competent PR person, working for the royal family, would have decided that the interviews and People article was a fabulous idea, from a royal perspective. If you're Angelina Jolie, possibly, but not if you're the Duchess of Sussex.
 
It doesn't really make sense to me based on how the BRF operate and how H&M have handled things previously....that they would give the go ahead for this to go on.


LaRae
 
Wow the People Magazine article could give a person diabetes, there’s so much sugar.

Meghan cooks for Harry, her life is devoted to helping others, she’s a devoted Christian and all around great person according to the five ‘anonymous’ sources.

Meghan is in for a long rough road as a royal if this is her response to a years worth of semi criticism.

Semi-criticism!!!

I’m afraid if that’s what people believe that’s all that has been happening for the past two years I don’t want to imagine what they’d consider to actually be bullying, malicious claptrap.
 
LOL okie dokie at JS-P. This was expected from her. She is always negative about the royals. And the Daily Mail? Thanks for the giggle.
 
So it’s ok for a royal aide to blatantly brief Katie Nicholl, Camilla Tominey, Emily Andrews, and so on but it’s not ok for Meghan’s friends to speak out.
 
Last edited:
What royal aide is briefing reporters about the Sussexes?


LaRae
 
So it’s ok for a royal aide to blatantly brief Katie Nicholl, Camilla Tominey, Emily Andrews, and so on but it’s not ok for Meghan’s friends to speak out.

And we have to keep in mind that those sources and their details that British media used are so vague that it can really be anyone anywhere whereas People might as well have identified some of these women based on the descriptions and content.
 
Unfortunately, whether they name themselves or not, simply giving that kind of interview has already started up the swirling gossip fest, and nothing much is going to derail it. I just cannot imagine why anyone thought this was a good idea.

Again, the Palace has done this before. Using friends to set the record straight. It ain’t nothing new. If this is what happened.
 
Last edited:
Again, the Palace has done this before. Using friends to set the record straight. It ain’t nothing new. If this is what happened.

Exactly! Charles ran a very very expensive campaign to rehab his and Camilla's image, for example. That is still going on! Authorized "sources" to say all kinds of things.

Same with the "Happy family" stories you see in People, Hello and other publications about the Cambridges. The Royals leak stories like crazy, at all levels. People pretending this is beneath the royals ? Every public person does this. Its basic image management.

I found parts of the articles to be totally over the top with the praise, personally. And I question the whole premise of this/going to People (even though royals go to them often). But at the end of the day, what is done is done.

So for once, its nice to hear from those who actually DO know her. And clearly love her deeply. The RRs will throw their fits and what have you, and this will probably not help with the IMO long overdue rapprochement between the Sussexes and some of the RRs. However, I still plan to go out and buy this issue and I never buy People :lol:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I've deleted a few off-topic comments. Please remember the mod note from a few pages ago:

As a mod noted earlier, this thread is not about the media and their treatment of Meghan. So please don't turn this latest article from People Magazine, into a discussion about the tabloids/media.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom