Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

From RationalWiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Harry and Meghan in 2018.
How an Empire ends
U.K. Politics
Icon politics UK.svg
God Save the King?

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, better known as Prince Harry (1984–) and Meghan Markle (1981–), are a married couple who are members of the British Royal Family. Born to (then-)Prince Charles and Princess Diana, Prince Harry is fifth in line of succession to the throne (at birth he was third in line). They are popular tabloid clickbait as part of the wider media-manufactured 'culture war'.

Agreeable undertakings[edit]

Harry at the 2018 Invictus GamesWikipedia.

Among the public statements made by the Sussexes, their valid points include on topics of;

  • The importance of good mental health. (Invictus Games, The Me You Can't See (2021),[1] BetterUp[2])
  • Privacy and press intrusion in which the High Court found in the Sussexes favour in legal actions in 2022.[3]
  • The state of the news media generally (e.g., bias, Daily Mail and other tabloids, Facebook, Leveson Inquiry, Piers Morgan and phone hacking).
  • Bullying (Jeremy Clarkson has dreamt of Meghan being made to parade naked through the streets with faeces being flung at her)[4]
  • Discrimination and diversity.[5]
  • Charitable causes (Invictus Games, Archewell Foundation[6], Sentebale)
  • The environment (Travalyst[7])
  • Meditation: Prince Harry is a daily practitioner of meditation and advocates for it as part of treatment for burnout.[8]

Impact on the media[edit]

Bias in the Daily Mail

They resigned from royal duties and moved to settle in California. Despite not being working royals, they maintain a public profile in the media. With the institution of royalty and rule by monarchy being based on fealty and deference (and not much else e.g. ability, popularity etc.), Harry and Meghan's similarities to working royals, and differences can be used to reliably mine stories on the barest of threads. Typical stories can be any of the following (indicative of the importance of royalty in Britain:

  • Who wore what clothing
  • The King/Queen
  • Royal expert speculation
  • Titles disputes
  • Wealth and money
  • Anonymous staff/palace source speculation
  • Official statements, tweets, comments, events or occasions
  • Royal protocol
  • Media or TV engagement, interviews

Reader engagement in a 'culture war' story can be personalised with Harry and Meghan as figureheads. Manufactured controversy for ad revenue can be maximised further by contrasting the smallest of differences with Prince Harry's brother Prince William and sister-in-law, Kate. This false dilemma appeals to those with simple reasoning abilities.

Studies[edit]

Bias in The Daily Telegraph. What did happen to manners, grace, and sensitivity?

In 2020, The Guardian analysed 843 articles in the British press over a year and a half, finding it statistically proven that Meghan received more negative press. Twice as many headlines were negative as compared to positive and the Kate received more favourable and less unfavourable press.[9] In 2021, the first of three reports into abuse of Harry and Meghan online made by Twitter analytics provider Bot SentinelWikipedia analysed 114,000 tweets and concluded, similarly, that a hate campaign had been organised from a small number of accounts.[10][11][12] Bot Sentinel's further reports found journalists followed and interacted with the troll accounts and amplified their conspiracies on TV and that the troll accounts have turned the coordinated hate campaign "into a lucrative hate-for-profit enterprise."[13]

Wider societal significance[edit]

Harry shares a joke with some old codger.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have no constitutional role apart from the Duke's position as a Counsellor of State.[14] In accruing wealth and power whilst preaching (sometimes the vaguest) of progressive (or New Age) messages, Harry and Meghan are no more grifters than the rest of the House of Windsor are descendants of grifters, and grifters who were prepared to practise violence to exercise their right of conquest. National differences between Britain and the United States and the long tradition of monarchical rule in Britain can be drawn upon for stories too. As with most modern portrayals of public figures, Harry and Meghan have supporters, just as they have opponents. These opponents are more consistently and explicitly aligned with conservatism, or more covertly with anti-Americanism and racism. When triggered by the press stories about the couple, they help drive traffic to websites and inadvertently help maintain the public interest in the couple and the drama in whose interest it is for the media to maintain. Many celebrities take advantage of this sort of mutually beneficial arrangement, and modern royals are also celebrities too.

Crank ideas about them[edit]

She had to wear a coat to cover the lines of the back "moonbump" never in my life have I seen anything like this ,this reaks of desperation,and with all.that flicking ,no one sees the PRODUCT ,what's there to Hide #MeghanMarkleIsAConArtist
—@ELostear[15]

Crank ideas about Meghan and Harry include:

Key shit stirrers and grifters[edit]

Sorry.

See also[edit]

External links[edit]

References[edit]

  1. https://tv.apple.com/us/show/the-me-you-cant-see/
  2. https://www.betterup.com/en-gb/about-us/leadership-team
  3. HRH Duchess of Sussex v Associated Newspapers Ltd [2021 EWCA Civ 181]
  4. https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/dec/18/jeremy-clarkson-condemned-meghan-column-the-sun
  5. https://www.theguardian.com/global/2020/jan/18/meghan-gets-more-than-twice-as-many-negative-headlines-as-positive
  6. https://archewell.com/foundation/
  7. https://travalyst.org/
  8. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/i-have-to-meditate-every-single-day-says-prince-harry-cxvsgsjnw
  9. https://www.theguardian.com/global/2020/jan/18/meghan-gets-more-than-twice-as-many-negative-headlines-as-positive
  10. Cheng, Amy (27 October 2021). "Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, was target of organized hate campaign on Twitter, report says". 
  11. Ng, Kate (27 October 2021). "Harry and Meghan targeted by hate campaign fueled by Twitter’s algorithm, report says" (in en). 
  12. Davies, Caroline (27 October 2021). "Meghan target of coordinated Twitter hate campaign, report finds". 
  13. Bot Sentinel (18 January 2022). "Coordinated Hate Campaign Targeting Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex - report-01-18-2022.pdf" (in en). 
  14. See the Wikipedia article on Counsellor of State.
  15. "Tammy B. 🇺🇸 (@ELostear) on X: "She had to wear a coat to cover the lines of the back "moonbump" never in my life have I seen anything like this ,this reaks of desperation,and with all.that flicking ,no one sees the PRODUCT ,what's there to Hide #MeghanMarkleIsAConArtist" / X" (in en). 21 October 2023. 
  16. Ellis, Emma Grey. "The Internet Does Not Believe You're Pregnant". 
  17. Gilbert, David (20 December 2022). "Meghan Markle Fake Pregnancy Conspiracies Are Flooding Twitter and YouTube" (in en). 
  18. Urwin, Rosamund; Donnellan, Kevin (7 April 2019). "Trolls cast doubt on Meghan's pregnancy". The Sunday Times. 
  19. Beattie, Eve (17 February 2023). "Meghan Markle exposed as a 'vicious liar' says Lady Colin Campbell" (in en). 
  20. "Meghan Markle dubbed 'dishonest and narcissistic opportunist' amid row over Sussex presidency bid" (in en). 
  21. "Meghan Markle is a ‘master manipulator’: Megyn Kelly" (in en). 14 December 2022. 
  22. "‘A ruthless social climber’: Meghan Markle ‘hooked her claws’ into Prince Harry" (in en). 24 April 2022. 
  23. Miller, Rebecca (19 January 2023). "Meghan Markle’s ‘silent command’ to ’stop Harry talking’ exposed" (in en). 
  24. The Royal Rogue (11 October 2023). "How Meghan CONTROLS Harry's behavior - Body Language Analysis" (in en). 
  25. Lady Colin Campbell (28 October 2023). "Harry & Meghan's cohorts move against Prince William & The King using red herrings & fantasy" (in en). 
  26. Murky Meg (28 October 2023). "Is Harry behind the Megxit Exposé by the Byline Times?" (in en). 
  27. The Royal Rogue (24 October 2023). "CONFIRMED! Harry and Meghan planted stories about THE QUEEN!" (in en). 
  28. 28.0 28.1 Latchem, Tom; Evans, Dan (9 December 2023). "The Truth About Megxit: How Dan Wootton and a 'Cash-For-Leaks' Scandal Split the Royal Family" (in en). 
  29. Evans, Dan (9 December 2023). "Revealed: The Emails Behind the Royal 'Cash-For-Leaks' Affair" (in en). 
  30. Evans, Dan; Latchem, Tom (9 December 2023). "In Plain Sight: The Picture the Palace Probe Missed" (in en). 
  31. Hall, Ellie (10 January 2023). "In His Memoir, Harry Says Charles and Camilla’s Media Team Gave The Press The Story About Prince William Allegedly Having An Affair" (in en). 
  32. Middleton, Joe (7 June 2023). "Prince Harry claims James Hewitt rumours ‘were plan to oust him from royal family’" (in en). 
  33. Finnis, Alex (7 June 2023). "What Prince Harry has actually said in court about the rumours around James Hewitt" (in en). 
  34. Bremner, Jade (6 June 2023). "Who is James Hewitt, the officer who had an affair with Princess Diana?" (in en). 
  35. Meghan's Towel (25 October 2023). "Meghan's Towel on X: "Witnesses come forward #JamesHewitt had a personal relationship with #PrincessDiana 2 years before #PrinceHarry was born." / X" (in en). 
  36. Baker, Sinéad; Friel, Mikhaila. "Piers Morgan has been cleared by the UK media regulator over his comments on Meghan Markle's mental health". 
  37. "MeghansMole©️ on X: "Here’s Meghan after she claimed to have been suicidal and was “weeping” between curtain calls 😂😂" / X" (in en). 2 October 2022. 
  38. Crystal Clear Truth (16 May 2019). "MEGHAN MARKLE AND PRINCE HARRY 2 FOR 1 TRANSVESTIGATION VIDEO AT LAST!!! BE DECEIVED NO MORE🎉🎊" (in en). 
  39. "ANDIBABY on X: "It seems that #MeghanMarkleYACHTGIRL - worked on Epstein's yacht and knew PA before H. That is why she was called as a witness by PA's accuser! It seems the RF paid to silence her to protect PA AND Meghan......now the gloves are off it seems! You reap what you sow." / X" (in en). 21 Jan 2023. 
  40. Royal Massive (13 Nov 2022). "PROOF That Meghan Was A Yacht Girl! A Toronto Native Confirms Harry's Wife A YACHT GIRL For Andrew" (in en). 
  41. "People Are So Mad At Meghan Markle For These Alleged 'Yacht Pictures With Prince Andrew'" (in en). 8 August 2022. 
  42. @TribesBritannia (3 Jan 2024). "Prince & Princess of Wales 𝕏 on X: "Meghan Markle was noted as someone of interest in the filings made against Prince Andrew as a witness. It’s an open secret she was a for hire yacht girl who got paid to entertain parties of men. But the connection between Meghan Markle and Jeffrey Epstein needs a lot more investigating. / X" (in en). 
  43. @tbatde (3 Jan 2024). "TB on X: "Meghan Markle 'yachted' with Epstein's girlfriend #EpsteinClientList #WrongNumberHarry #MeghanMarkleEXPOSED #MeghanMarkleIsAConArtist" / X" (in en). 
  44. "ihtiandrs on X: "Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have recently joined …" (in en). 16 March 2024. 
  45. "Lean Meme Machine on X: "#MeghanMarkle #InstagramLovingBitchWife #Inf…" (in en). 14 March 2024. 
  46. "HarrysGreySuit on X: "Serious question here , why hasn’t she sued the…" (in en). 26 January 2022. 
  47. "Suzie on X: "Meghan Markle revealed as a s*x worker by her own client…" (in en). 5 December 2023. 
  48. "Meghan's Towel on X: "#MeghanMarkle was a recruiter for WEF in 2014 t…" (in en). 16 March 2024. 
  49. "leilani dowding 🌸🚜 ☮️ on X: "Harry and Meghan have a new show out a…" (in en). 6 January 2023. 
  50. "The British Prince on X: "Harry and Meghan’s Censorship 1 - Gagging S…" (in en). 24 September 2023. 
  51. "According2Taz on X: "Wow! Many suspected Harry & Meghan faked the…" (in en). 28 February 2024. 
  52. "Canellecitadelle on X: "@hmal007 Where are the pictures of Paparazzis…" (in en). 4 February 2024. 
  53. "IreneBritUSA on X: "Free security Free luxury accommodation...". 8 May 2024. 
  54. "Andy Signore on X: "EXPOSED?! Prince Harry & Meghan Markle...". 14 February 2024. 
  55. "MeghansMole©️ on X: "The amount that was spent on the Private Jet...". 14 February 2024. 
  56. "MeghansMole©️ on X: "Seriously, what’s with Meghan Markle acting inappropriate with underage boys...". 18 January 2024. 
  57. "MeghansMole©️ on X: "Nothing like a 58 year old woman in heat showing off her flappy vagine to underage school children...". 15 August 2024. 
  58. "MeghansMole©️ on X: "Why is 58 year old Meghan Markle always getting extra close to underage school boys...". 15 August 2024. 
  59. Waterson, Jim (7 August 2023). "Dan Wootton allegedly used Martin Branning pseudonym to meet male model". 
  60. Rajan, Amol (28 January 2021). "Dan Wootton leaves News UK for GB News and Mail Online". 
  61. "Prince Andrew latest: Lady Colin Campbell dropped from Christmas lights event after 'defending' Epstein". 20 November 2019. 
  62. Tobin, Sam; Holden, Michael (15 December 2023). "Piers Morgan knew about phone-hacking at Daily Mirror, London judge finds". 
  63. Weaver, Matthew (1 September 2021). "Ofcom clears Piers Morgan over Meghan comments". 
  64. Staples, Louis (15 December 2022). "It’s OK to Admit That Harry and Meghan Are Annoying". 
  65. Cockerell, Isobel (2022-12-14). "Meghan never stood a chance against the internet" (in en-US). 
  66. Bot SentinelWikipedia. "Coordinated Hate Campaign Targeting Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex" (in en). p. 3. 
  67. Hall, Ellie (12 March 2022). "Meghan Markle’s Biggest Troll Is Her Half-Sister Samantha" (in en). 
  68. Grindell, Samantha. "Samantha Markle's Twitter was suspended following a report that her account had been harassing Meghan Markle for years". 
  69. Venarchik, Anna (13 March 2022). "Meghan’s Sister Spins Biggest Twitter Conspiracies: Report" (in en). 
  70. Waterson, Jim (15 May 2018). "All the world's a stage: Thomas Markle and the art of the celebrity photo". 
  71. Oppenheim, Maya (15 May 2018). "As Meghan Markle's father is revealed to have staged pictures ahead of royal wedding, just how real are paparazzi photos?" (in en). 
  72. Barbour, Shannon (19 July 2018). "A Friend of Meghan Markle Thinks Her Dad Faked His Heart Attack to Get Out of Going to Her Wedding". 
  73. Bailey, Alyssa (19 July 2018). "A Source Close to Meghan Markle Says Her Dad Faked His Heart Surgery to Skip Her Wedding". 
  74. Sykes, Tom (18 July 2018). "How Meghan Markle’s Dad Allegedly Faked His Heart Operation to Skip the Royal Wedding" (in en). 
  75. Barnes, Brooks (8 October 2020). "Harry and Meghan Get an Apology After Suing Paparazzi". 
  76. Siddique, Haroon (15 December 2023). "Prince Harry v Mirror Group: key findings of the phone-hacking case" (in en).