One of the funniest things about the Duchess of Sussex’s lawsuit against the Mail on Sunday and Prince Harry’s amazing statement defending his wife was the fact that it came towards the end of what had been a very good tour as far as royal-press relations. Harry and Meghan were both making speeches nearly every day, and offering up impromptu public statements and mini-interviews on-camera. They spoke to a lot of people who were then free to speak to the press. Harry and Meghan weren’t hiding away and demanding that the press have zero access while on tour, unlike some royals (cough). But just hours before Harry’s statement came out and the lawsuit was announced, Harry did have a moment with a Sky News reporter in Malawi. Harry stopped by the Mauwa Health Centre for less than an hour, and as he was leaving, Rhiannon Mills shouted some questions to him from the press pack:
Mills asked him, “That short conversation, what do you hope to achieve through it?” I’m not entirely sure he heard the first (snippy) part of the question, but he responded with: “What? Ask them.” Then Mills asked, “Is that why it’s important for you to come and talk to them?” Harry looked exasperated with her, and he said rather patronizingly, “Rhiannon, don’t behave like this.” My opinion: they both kind of acted like dicks? But I also don’t consider this “snapping” on Harry’s part. It’s more like “you know the tour rules, don’t do this.”
Just after the lawsuit & statement came out, Katie Nicholl wrote a piece for Vanity Fair about it. She lost the thread of it pretty quickly when she couldn’t even use her words to call the press treatment of Meghan “racist.” Instead, Nicholl wrote: “The negative coverage, often with what some have called racially charged undertones, began even before Meghan Markle’s relationship with Prince Harry became public…” And yes, those damn racially charged undertones. White people will tie themselves in linguistic knots just to avoid saying that some sh-t is flat-out racist.
Anyway, you can read Nicholl’s piece here – she was on the African tour, so it’s basically a piece about how all the reporters on the tour were super-mad at the Sussexes for… you know, calling them out on their racist bulls–t and hypocrisy. There’s a lot of hand-wringing over the fact that Harry and Meghan stepped on their own good newscycle because the tour was going well and the press was so positive. Yeah, and as I said… the press was crazy positive after the South Pacific tour last year. And after that, there were months of nasty smears and negativity, all gleefully reported by all of these outlets. It just feels like the press is mad at the Sussexes for proactively getting ahead of the planned post-tour smear campaign.
Update: And now Prince Harry is separately suing the Daily Mirror and The Sun.
The Duke of Sussex has begun legal action against the owners of the Sun, the defunct News of the World, and the Daily Mirror, in relation to alleged phone-hacking. Documents have been filed on behalf of Prince Harry over the alleged illegal interception of voicemail messages, Buckingham Palace has confirmed. His wife Meghan this week began legal action against the Mail on Sunday.
The BBC has not yet established when the duke’s allegations date from. However, Jonny Dymond, the BBC’s royal correspondent, says: “The presumption is this goes back to the phone-hacking scandal of the early 2000s.” A spokeswoman for News Group Newspapers (NGN) – the publishers of the Sun and the News of The World – said: “We confirm that a claim has been issued by the Duke of Sussex.
Damn… this is BIG. We’ll have more on Sunday and throughout next week.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
They were both a bit unprofessional, sure, but I’ll give Harry the benefit of the doubt since he must be under a lot of stress. I feel for him and Meghan. She seems like a very sincere person and doesn’t deserve all this bashing. I really hope the tide turns for them.
Same. There’s NO way I’d be able to hold it together professionally in his position. I would’ve ripped someones’ head off loooooooong ago.
He wasn’t unprofessional. He’s allowed he’s allowed to be emotional and angry. Some of you carry on as if you’d be less vulnerable.
These tabloids are the ones being unprofessional and racist as f*ck.
There must be another video.
They were both kind of dickish, which… is that really so much better than snappy? It WAS patronizing. I do understand that he’s probably exhausted, and fed up, though. It’s a tough situation.
Yes!!!! I’m sure the bucket is over flowing and this is the result. One can only take so much. And when he stated that he saw his mom fall victim to the media and now his wife (when expecting), my heart went out to him.
And he really resembles his grandfather PP in the pic here.
I have empathy for both of them, tbh. I can COMPLETELY empathize with someone who’s hit their breaking point (life’s been hectic lately for me haha) and who isn’t at top ‘people mode’. But I also do feel sorry for the reporter – who seemed to be doing her job. She probably didn’t approach it in the best way… but the same can be said for Harry. It’s just unfortunate all around.
agreed!!!
I interpreted the reporter’s question completely differently . To me “that short conversation, what do you hope to achieve through it?” was her completely belittling what Harry had just done. To me, she was basically implying “that short conversation” was useless and wouldn’t accomplish anything.
I saw it as him recognizing her condescension and responding with exasperation and annoyance at the constant onslaught from them.
Rhiannon Mills is one of the worst offenders when it comes to bashing the Duchess. I can see why he was on his last good nerve.
Kebbie, I guess I kind of referenced that in my first post where I said they were both being dickish. It was definitely in the realm of condescending… but at the same time, it’s a half way fair question albeit not a super kind one. It might not be nice, but I can see her point. She should have phrased it differently like “What do you hope to see happen in the future for this?” or something along the lines of that. But even his first response of “What? Ask them” wasn’t a good reply. It shifts the focus off of himself, and unintentionally makes it sound like he was done with it and it should fall back on the people he spoke to as something for them to deal with.
That said, I don’t follow any of the specific reporters so I don’t know anything about Rhiannon. She could be horrible, she could be tough but good at her job – I literally don’t know. I’m just looking at this one exchange without a preconceived idea of their normal back and forth.
Based on yours and ProfPlums response though, I can see how he might have already been at the end of his rope with her. And again – even if I think he was condescending, I absolutely can see why he got there. It’s been a constant battle when it comes to M’s treatment in the media, they’re probably jetlagged and just overall tired, and he’s over it. Which isn’t inherently wrong of him, I just think that BOTH could have handled the exchange better.
@Erinn – jetlagged? Erm, how do you figure?
Patronizing as hell. I actually thought that he is revealing something about his character here, something we don’t get to see much, and thought of Meghan. I’ve dated guys who would drop hints of similar behavior, because I’m generally attracted to the assertive, confident type. It wouldn’t be a bother in the beginning, but once the honeymoon period is over, feelings start to get hurt. As a wife, Meghan is the first person to experience it fully. Prince Harry has always been presented to the public as this easy going, happy-go-lucky young man, but I bet you, he is a Prince in its fullest sense, just like his father and brother – an entitled, casually hurtful man who is used to being catered to and doesn’t dilly dally with niceties when he doesn’t feel like it.
@rhys, yikes, that’s a stretch. Yes, he’s revealing something about his character, that he’s willing to match the tone of someone who is being rude and belittling his work by asking a snide question.
But sure, let’s extrapolate him acting human into “he’s casually hurtful” when he wants to be and poor Meghan for having to deal with that douche. You’re projecting your past onto a man you don’t know.
You see that whole story you just made up based on YOUR experiences which have nothing to do with this person who doesn’t know you? Now imagine you had access to hundreds of thousands (or millions) of eyeballs potentially reading your made up story. Now you’re a royal reporter.
Personally, I read it as that reporter trying to shoot her shot and get her moment (which she did) and then also getting checked. As she should have done. That wasn’t the moment and/or her delivery was off. But it wasn’t that big a deal. No elaborate story.
Rhys,
I know what you’re saying. And that’s my thing with Harry. I think he’s probably a fun, charming guy. But at the end of the day he WAS raised as a prince. I think he makes good attempts to educate himself on causes and truly does care about people. But it also doesn’t negate that he’s part of an institution where he’s lived his life as a ‘superior’ human to others. But this is also why I think that Meghan WAS a little bit hurt during that balcony appearance that people seemed mixed on. I don’t think he purposely gets snippy, but I do think there’s a bit of a tendency for him to slip back into a certain mode because it just escapes me that anyone raised in his lifestyle WOULDN’T be entitled and a bit short when things don’t go as planned or whatever. Everyone has a bad day here and there where they’re snottier to the people that the love than they should be. It doesn’t make it okay, but it also doesn’t make them a bad guy either. I just think he’s human. And I do think that he gets too much credit for being a certain way when a lot of it probably is because of Meghan. I don’t doubt that she’s educated him on a lot of things, and I think whatever level of ‘wokeness’ is a direct result of her being a great human and it rubbing off on him. He’s lived a VERY insulated life in a lot of ways, and I think at times we all have a tendency to project good qualities on the people we like to the point where we hold them to a standard that just isn’t attainable.
LadyJax,
I guess the thing is, that’s the sort of thing that happens A LOT around here. There’s a lot of picking apart moments and dictating personality and motive based on isolated events or soundbites. Even outside of Royal posts – this is a common occurrence. And I think if it’s something that’s deemed ‘okay’ for some celebrities/public figures, it should be okay for all – or okay for none. I don’t always agree with it, but I do think there is validity in at least a lot of it – especially when speaking to a general trend as a whole, and maybe not directly parsing a new meaning from something minor. But I think we can agree that a Prince PROBABLY has certain expectations of how things should be that wouldn’t be the same sort of expectations that a normal person would have. I don’t think that Rhys is trying to vilify him or anything – just pointing out that he’s human and he’s not some sort of unicorn within a long running institute that has managed to buck all of the negative traits of the others raised in the same way.
OMG at the stretching here. NO ONE thinks Harry is some sort of perfect unicorn.
Does Harry probably have asshole moments? Of course. Everyone does. Is Harry probably more entitled than the average person? Sure, probably. Does that mean he treats Meghan horribly behind closed doors? I’m going to go with a big fat NO on that one.
And before you hit me with a Wall of Text Erinn, that’s what Rhys is implying.
ETA and to be clear, my WoT comment is mostly a joke, but you just wrote two huge paragraphs about how a prince might be entitled and a human might be snippy at times.
I guess I’m sorry? I didn’t realize there was a word limit here? Also remember that I’m making two different replies to two different posters in one spot. Joke or not, it’s not like I’m the only one who writes long posts. Take a look on the post about them deciding to sue the mail or the post asking if they consulted the RF beforehand, and you’ll see posts longer than mine that aren’t replying to multiple other posters and nobody seemed to have an issue?
And to be fair, there have been times where I make a point without clarifying and that reply gets ‘eaten’ or deleted for whatever reason, so I’d rather fully explain myself form the start.
Personally, I didn’t take it as Rhys vilifying him – they were explaining their experience and commenting how certain things he does reminds them of people in their personal life (like people do all the time around here). You and LadyJax obviously took it differently than I did, and that’s fine. Only Rhys knows for sure what they meant. We’re allowed to disagree. There’s a lot of people who say ‘poor Kate’ for having to deal with moody personality deficient Will. People are saying that Bea is like Leann Rimes based on a fluff article written with anonymous sources. Miley Cyrus only ever wants attention and all her actions are to hurt her ex. None of us know these people, we can only comment on the way things SEEM to us.
Hopefully my walls of text didn’t ruin your Friday and you’re able to enjoy the weekend.
Sometimes a person in his position will use it to pull rank and put someone in their place. The Royal reporters believe in their hierarchy and everyone having their place, which is why Meghan drives them bat shit crazy. Imagine, Prince Philip’s grandson showing a bit of arrogance and dismissiveness once in a while. It’s their system so don’t know why they get upset when an HRH acts like one. All this crap about humble thrifty Royals, when it suits their narrative. Now she has a story to dine out on for the next decade.
Someone else also pointed out that she had broke from the press pack and was rushing AT his car which is a big NO from a security perspective. You even see Harry’s RPO and staff start to move in.
Harry had JUST given her an interview. I think Mills got a bit too comfortable and overstepped some lines. Harry was joking with at first but its only when she stated to follow him to the car, again NOT done for security reasons, that he got short.
I agree that this is revealing of his character. Contrary to popular opinion, I’ve always thought Harry was an entitled snot just like his brother, only with the larrikin jokey persona that made people like him better. I think Meghan probably spends a lot of time smoothing his ruffled feathers, which would be exhausting after a while.
He is a lot like William. We’ve seen that countless times. He just has more of a personality, so people ignore all the glaring signs that he’s just another entitled rich kid.
The way he loves to play colonialist with all his white aristo friends tells you everything you need to know about him.
I thought her tone was really hostile, personally, towards him. It was inappropriate and disrespectful to the organization as well. I mean, she’s a reporter. She could follow up with the people there and, like he said, ask them directly. The fact is him just showing up does give them exposure they wouldn’t have had previously. He just wasn’t in the mood for her nonsense. I think her tone, and this was before he released the statement and lawsuit, seems like she wanted to get a reaction so could post some negative story later. This isn’t the White House press Corps, and these reporters know the protocol, as they keep constantly scolding Meghan about it. Don’t feel one bit of sympathy for her at all, and his reaction was pretty mild tbh.
Did he get upset at the question or did he get upset because she was throwing questions at him when he was trying to leave???
I think that’s what it was. They(royal reporters) don’t usually yell questions as they’re getting into the car.
Are the royal reporters allowed to ask questions in a press conference type of way..i have actually never seen a royal reporter directly asking a question,just seen the camera guys obviously filming and pictures. What are the RRs actually doing ? Lol
Kind of looks to me as if she (deliberately) went outside the agreed protocol for this event, trying to land a “gotcha” moment.
I’m deeply unmoved by Harry’s “curt” response to her as I’ll bet there’s a lot more context to this interaction that we’re not privy to. Plus frankly, given the monstrous behaviour of this press pack in the last few months, I’m more than happy to give Harry the benefit of doubt here until we know more of the full exchange.
I think he was annoyed at the question. To me, it was a super patronizing question. She basically asked, “What’s the point of you even being here?” He was there to bring awareness to the charity. And if she wanted to know more about the charity, then she should’ve asked the Mauwa Health Centre. It’s not Sentebale, the Invictus Games or Hubb Kitchen. He’s not going to get in there and get super involved. It’s one of a hundred charities they visit to bring awareness to the good deeds the charity does for the public. Rhiannon knows this, and Harry knows that Rhiannon knows this. IMO, that’s why he patronized her right back. Ever since the media labeled H&M as “woke”, they have been trying to catch them in a “See! They really don’t care about these problems or these people moment.” And Harry is having none of it.
Plus, Rhiannon Mills has done some nasty reporting on Meghan, so Harry probably already has no tolerance for her.
It feels weird agreeing so heartily with a comment from someone with the name “Alex Jones,” but, agreed!
(No offense meant, there must be many Alex Jones’ out there, I’m glad to be reminded! 🙂 )
@ Alex Jones,100% agree. Totally hit the nail in the head 👏🏾. So done with the whiny press pack and their so called grievances.Their goal isn’t t to keep the monarchy in check or be accountable to the people, but simply at this point to bring the Sussex’s, particularly Meghan, down. Will be interesting to see fawning and scraping headlines when they head to Pakistan, assuming they all go.
Much ado about nothing
The press must be mad their post tour smear campaign is not going to go as planned.
Thank you. Some hace said that Harry’s statement was released at the wrong time, but I think it was perfect. Now every negative report from reporters will appear as if they are retaliating against the Sussexes. I don’t think Harry snapped or was rude.
I also find it funny how some people think this is patronizing but are silent about reporters’ treatment of Meghan. No sensible person is going to have sympathy for the British press.
Agree. Team Harry and Meghan.
“Rhiannon, don’t behave like this”…..LOL!!
A new meme is born.
yeah it was super patronizing of Harry..then again, I’ve never expected him to be not a dick, what with being raised as a prince to believe his family has a divine right to rule over people. I’m pretty sure they are all pretty patronizing when they don’t have their public faces on.
Agree. And if this was almost any other royal or politician or celebrity instead of Harry the reception to his reply here would be very different. And not because of the unique history he has with the press: even if this was his brother (who obviously shares the same history) people would be tearing him apart if he gave Harry’s response.
I agree with both of you. Harry was way out of line. And in fact he showed that he actually has not much of a clue and probably no particular passion for this cause: couldn’t even manage a sentence off the cuff to say why he was there and what he hoped to achieve? Meghan gave an excellent interview to IGTV on the tour– super informed, polished etc. But Harry is notoriously dim and has been raised literally from birth to think he is better than others. That is going to come out sometimes, and it did in a very embarrassing and public way in this vide. Do I think he is very stressed? Absolutely! And with bloody good reason, too. That said it is shocking and disappointing that he can’t manage to string two words together to talk about the charity and what he had hoped to achieve. I guarantee if William or Kate had behaved like this, then (most of) the comments here would be very, very different. Let’s be intellectually honest, people, even if we have a bias.
Agree if it had been William or Kate there would be a stronger reaction here.
That said, I really didn’t think much of this exchange. As in, I don’t think Harry or Rhiannon were behaving that badly. To me it was just a quick spark that happens occasionally between humans, particularly when people are on the go.
I don’t doubt any of them are entitled at times but I’ve been more terse than this and I certainly wasn’t raised in a palace. Everyone has their moments.
I disagree. For one thing a royal reporter wouldn’t roll up on William or anyone else like that, or ask such a question. The press would excuse William ‘s response even if he did say something like that, but they only give him softball questions. She seemed irritated with Harry and was being deliberately rude. They show nothing but deference to the other royals, or at least look the other way.
@l4frimaire, I said the reaction would be different here, on this site.
It’s interesting how we all see the same thing and have completely different takes on what’s happening.
I don’t believe for a second that Harry didn’t know what the charity was about. No matter how “dim” you choose to describe him as, we have never seen him go on an engagement unprepared and ignorant of the causes he represents. That’s not him. Sorry. (I’m not going to say that sounds more like Kate, cause that’s not exactly fair either, but whatever).
My take it is that he was responding in kind to a rude, deliberately patronising question from a woman with a long history of disparaging his wife.
Only a genuine snowflake would be affected by the short, pointless exchange. But of course, it’s the perfect opportunity to prepare the firing squad yet again, over nothing.
Can we stop acting like Rhiannon was asking a question at the same level as reporter going after Andrew? Which have they even done yet? Harry and Meghan have been on tour with these same people for days and gave several interviews on camera with them during the tour. It’s not like they have been ignoring them so there was no urgent need to rush at the car to ask a snarky question about a charity.
Is Rhiannon going to do this in Pakistan and grill William on his knowledge of the places he visits? Doubt it.
Exactly.
I wish I cared more about Harry being snippy with her but I don’t. I wished he snapped at them more often.
She was out of line. There are strict rules on these press tours and throwing out questions like that isn’t one of them. She knew what she was doing and so did Harry.
How so? Can you list these rules?
She was doing her job of asking questions and he was there to do his as a representative of his country. Her question wasn’t snippy, he on the other hand was heavy handed and patronizing over a basic question. He could just carried on and pretended not to hear if he couldn’t formulate a response.
The royals need the press and vice versa. If harry doesn’t want to answer questions, next time he can take care of the publicity himself via his IG account.
Until then, he can behave professionally. This is his job, he’s not doing charity out of the goodness of his heart
They do the publicity themselves and they are still attacked for doing it because the reporters are salty about their Instagram page and lack of control. H&M don’t need the press as much as some think because IG and social media has taken over. Those papers have been dwindling for years and ratings for those news programs have as well. The relationship between the royals and press have always been toxic and he’s the one royal who does charity of the goodness of his heart. Personally, that question was slightly snarky.
The press know the rules. The way she asked was definately tmz paparazzi style which the royal family tend to avoid (hence the rules). He should have ignored her and advised his aides to deal with it but I can understand his frustrations.
It wasn’t a press conference lol. Reporters during royal tours don’t yell out questions at them. There are photo ops and designated interview times. She wanted to catch him off guard.
This particular reporter isn’t to blame for H&M issues with the tabloid. It is ridiculous to blame the entire press corps for the negative press H&M have had.
If he feels this way about all of them, then as i said, he should ban them completely from his tours, rely a 100% on his Insta page and to hell if the press complains about lack of access since then he would have cut them off completely.
But he cannot use them when it suits him and act so patronizing when he doesn’t. He could have politely declined to answer instead of responding the way he did.
So no, Harry’s attitude is unwarranted.
@ mrs Bumf
First off,
“This particular reporter isn’t to blame for H&M issues with the tabloid”
I remember this woman calling Harry “angry, frustrated and fragile man”. She is actively doing her fair share to disparage the couple, let’s stop pretending otherwise.
Also, I just love how we’re all pretending that she’d have been hurt in any way by this exchange. She ambushed him and got what she was hoping for….a reaction. ANY notable reaction.
She’s probably celebrating and negotiating her bonus for this over a nice champagne lunch somewhere.
@bella dupont
If harry can be so easily ambushed over a basic question about what he hoped to achieve by his meeting , then maybe he is needs to get another job.
Frankly in this instance he does come across as an easily frustrated and fragile man.
And let’s not pretend that if william had answered in a similar stupid way, people here wouldn’t be asking for his blood.
@ mrs Bump
Well done! You must be a paragon of infinite virtue and patience, where you never, ever get to the point where you say “fuck off!” to the never ending calculated, deliberate provocations.
Alas, he didn’t even say that. Just “…don’t behave like this….” and yet, some people have found the need for emergency medical assistance to cope with the stress and harshness of it all.
Personally, my response to her would not have been suitable for print.
P.S in general:
Should you ever find yourself in the position of *defending* the actions of the British Tabloid press, you know its definitely time to re-evaluate your moral compass.
@bella dupont
First of all sky news is not a tabloid. So before you start off making accusations about how i need to re-assess my priorities, maybe check up on that basic fact.
Secondly i have never told anyone to f off while working, i didn’t realise one had to be a paragon of virtue to maintain a decent level of professional conduct.
Again, Harry was there on the country’s dime, not his own, so what he hoped to achieve by his meeting is a very valid question. This wasn’t an inappropriate personal question about his family, wife, child, personal jet use or whatever the tabloids have thrown at him, it was a question about his taxpayer paid job.
@bella
P.S sky news isn’t a tabloid.
Also, no i have never told anyone to f off while at work.
Harry wasn’t asked a personal question about his wife, child, or jet use or whatever but a valid one about what his taxed-payer paid meeting was meant to achieve.
Doesn’t Harry also have the right to expect professionalism from the press? I would expect it in my interactions with them, that’s also how I acted when a reporter. I wouldn’t for a minute think to be sarcastic or insulting to the person I was interviewing, I also wouldn’t tolerate it from a reporter, no one would. Rhiannon wasn’t looking for information, she wanted a reaction, and she used less than professional means to acquire it. Being less than professional is probably a job requirement for the tabloids.
@MrsBump “don’t behave like this!”
Never mind.
Then the rules have to go. (Showing my bias here as I am an ardent republican). Meanwhile, Harry needs to be professional or resign from this particular “job” of being a working royal.
Re resigning: dream on.
A female reporter asked questions about the event as he was leaving and he told her to sit down basically – don’t behave like this. It’s not like they’ve been giving meeting with reporters (which is actually common on tours), the only way to get original sound bites is to throw out questions. I don’t think her asking was bad; she was doing her job. I think he could have just kept walking if he didn’t want to answer. The letter didn’t come out yet, so of course she was referring to his tour. ITV is not the Mail on Sunday – they were 1 of 2 networks allowed at Archie’s presentation. They’re very favorable to royalty.
No. ITV is the home of Piers Morgan. It is the home of Eamonn Holmes who called Meghan uppity. They are the source of the BAFTA nomination for her abusive dad and the aforementioned Piers. They have facilitated her dads blackmail and abuse of his child. Whilst I don’t know much about Rhiannon myself, ITV as a tv station is not innocent here.
I would add that they are definitely the tv equivalent of the Mail on Sunday. Anybody who has ever watched ITV news knows how much they dumb everything down. You literally lose IQ points just by watching their ‘news’.
But the reporter had plenty of sound bites from both Harry & Meghan due to her interviewing them a few days prior. There is video of the interview and she also wrote an article on it. She was out of line and she knows it. There are no other examples on the tour of reporters yelling questions at them because that’s not a part of the “rules of engagement’. She was going for a reaction and unfortunately Harry played into her hands.
https://twitter.com/skyrhiannon/status/1176780965588480001?s=21
Harry in particular was giving sound bites to them almost every day of this tour so it’s false to say they weren’t giving interviews.
The reporter doesn’t deserve a hall pass for being snarky just because she is female. I don’t see any male posturing on Harry’s part — he called her out because she was being unprofessional. Her questions were not presented in neutral way — they were clearly worded to provoke a negative response. While would have been more professional for Harry to keep his cool, I can see why he told her off.
It’s clear she’s not a pro at the job. She’ll end up at the DM if she’s not already there.
harry was kind of snappy, maybe patronizing is a better word – but I still found it funny, especially considering the question she was asking. “what do you hope to achieve through that short conversation”? Its like Rhiannon is new to the world of royal work and royal reporting.
Again though I’ll argue that the timing was deliberate and brilliant. The RRs had spent the tour praising the Sussexes, excited they “finally” got video of Archie (who wasn’t even 5 months old at the time!!!) The statement and lawsuit made sense. “you like us now? we have done nothing different than what we have done over the past few months/year.”
I’ll add that its the reporters are whining about the timing because it is embarrassing to them. It’s getting a lot of attention which is bringing attention to ALL their coverage of H&M over the past year. They would have rather the lawsuit been filed quietly so it could have slipped under the radar and not gotten this kind of international attention. Instead, to borrow a phrase from West Wing, H&M threw an elbow on national TV.
His comment was before the letter dropped. So she couldn’t have known. But I do think without the letter this clip would have remained on tumblr and not on newspapers and morning shows as “proof” of his hatred of the press.
I know that. My response re: timing is specifically about the RRs complaining that the timing of the statement/lawsuit takes the focus away from the tour.
Yep. He basically called them phonies and he said, we know what you’re doing and we aren’t falling for it. Keep that same energy across the board. Don’t be positive now.
WORD.
This isn’t a random reporter. This is someone Harry has known for years and given previous interviews to.
Then she obviously knew what the protocol was, and blithely decided to ignore it.
The reporters are angry because he basically caught them by surprise and they were getting too cocky with their articles about how the Sussexes were finally listening to their staff and they thought that their smearing and faux controversies made them get in line. Archie’s appearance and interviews made them happy but it wouldn’t have lasted and they would’ve been back to the same games and smearing like before. Call them petty all you want but the Sussexes have every right to treat these people with contempt because they have been doing the most due to lack of access and control. You don’t get reward bullies, not like Diana, Kate and William have done .
That’s kind of a rude question in the first place, isn’t it? To me it sounds more patronizing than his response.
Yes, it was a very pissy question. Harry should have just ignored the reporter but I do not think his response was snappish or condescending. He was just calling her out for questioning the validity of the engagement and her implying it was not worthwhile.
Yes. It was like she was implying the meeting was a waste of time which is annoying to say the least.
To me she was implying that his short conversation did not matter. All the members of the Royal Family do the same type met / greets and short speech routines. Maybe this reporter should switch to some other type of journalism. Why not cover the British government. (Now that would require some hard hitting snarky questions). Harry ask her to interview the people who are actually working in the area. You can tell she doesn’t care about what is going on in South Africa. She is just following Harry and Meghan for pictures and gossip. Some of the journalist did interview people who ran the organization that Harry and Meghan highlighted on this tour. It was great to hear from them.
The headlines of “Meghan is trying to change her image with this tour” was already out there. So you know tabs where going to continue trashing Meghan after this tour. They thought they where successful at bullying them to get pictures of Archie. I guess she thought the press could now control Harry like some of the others members of royal family. What they did not count on was Harry throwing them under the bus on the world stage. Prefect Timing.
It’s a valid question, and one that should be asked every time the royals do these quick little engagements.
If it’s more than a photo op for them they should be able to say exactly what its purpose was and what the plan for support going forward is. If they can’t even tell us what they expect their visit to achieve then what’s the point?
This is their job, and they should be able to argue the case for their job having purpose and value. If they can’t manage that, why are we subsidising them?
Julie Carr-
I’m sure if the reporter was sincere in her question she would’ve received a reply similar to what you outlined.
The writer needs counseling. You can’t call everything racist. Much criticism is deserved. I feel sorry you have this giant chip on your shoulder that everything is racist to you.
It’s usually the people pointing out the chip on another person’s shoulder who need to clean the racist boogers out of their own eyes.
This website/blog isn’t a democracy lol. I’m dying at the comparison to Trump.
Exactly. The willfully ignorant with blinders on are a huge part of the problem. Even if you CHOOSE not to see racism or ignore it doesn’t mean POC aren’t still experiencing. Or that other people don’t see it.
Dictator style?
@LadyD – I keep laughing at this image in my head of Kaiser and CB in an ivory tower cackling at their total power and their army of lemmings.
@Mego, BWAHAHA
Criticism is one thing but a sustained personal character assassination isn’t and that is what this press have done. Kaiser is calling it what it is and race is a huge factor in this.
Well @Rein, if the writer needs counselling then perhaps you need reading glasses. She didn’t say this particular interaction with Harry involved racism so I’m not sure where you’re //You can’t call everything racist// comes from.
It has been mentioned previously on here that there are things to criticize about Meghan and Harry, but that it is very hard to do in this current environment where everything they do gets reported on with a certain slant. I guess you missed that article.
You are very lucky that you seem to live in a world where racism doesn’t affect you.
If it did you would know that it never goes away, it’s always there no matter what you do, how hard your work, what strides you make, how white you look (in Meghan’s case), whether you dress up or down.
You’d have a huge chip too if your daily interactions were coloured by the color of your skin. Thank your lucky stars (because that’s all that it is) that you came out the “right” color.
I think we need to realize that racism is nuanced and institutionalized. People think you have to burn crosses and call racial slurs on the regular to be racist. this is not so. This is where the negativity is coming from. It is what it is, and we’re talking about this because people want to be racist and not be called out on the behaviour.
@rein, you go from “Is some coverage racist? yes. Do we mention it every time to then not criticize them and remember racism exists? That’s the tone of this article too. And it’s ridiculous and misplaced and sheltered.”
to
“Meghan married someone who wore a NAZI costume. I’m sorry, she knew what type of family and friends Harry had. I would never associate with someone who did that. . . EVER.”
Lol, which is it? Do we commit to stop mentioning racism – regardless of merit or relevance? Or do we forever cancel people who did racist things in the past but have since made amends?
Textbook tumblr hater and MAGA comment.
Wish CB had a “Don’t Feel the Troll” button.
Great idea, or at least up & down votes?
PS- What did you mean by “tumblr” hater?
They talked about the up and down votes in a recent podcast – I think the idea was that it would require too much monitoring and a significant change to the site itself.
I don’t know about that. Wish I could agree with you, but racism is incredibly multilayered and unless one is a person of color, one doesn’t really understand what it’s like to live in a racist world.
RRs on tour do not ask questions as the Royal is leaving. They are given time to ask questions and that reporter knew it. So a dick move was met with a dick response.
Maybe I’m in the minority but i dont think that the question was inappropriate. Maybe shouting it was, but it was a valid question. And I love how people are like “they know there are rules.” To defend this but love when H&M break all the rules. He could have ignored her, he could have said a quick “yes or no” he didnt have to be a donkey about it.
I understand hes not a fan of the press, they have treated him horribly and they deserve this lawsuit and to be embarrassed because of their racist treatment of Meg.
But in this instance, this woman was just doing her job and yes he snapped at her.
OMG. This again??? What rules have Harry and Meghan broken??
None, as pointed out above. It was inappropriate of her to ask this question while he was leaving, everyone knew it, and she did it anyway.
When you asked that question, they can never answer it.
what rules have H&M broken?
Sorry –
I misworded that. I don’t mean that they have broken any rules, I mean that it is highly encouraged that they do. People love to say they want Meg and Harry to break all the rules and shake things up. That is what I meant.
I look forward to this exact same question being asked in Pakistan. But we all know it won’t. Questioning the value of these tours has merit, but only dropping it on one person and not all the royals during all their tours is bs.
Such a great point.
NIC –
Those are my thoughts as well. Let’s start asking them all these questions.
Excellent, excellent point
And I’m sorry, hold on – I just watched the clip. He was way rude. He was way patronizing. He didnt need to do all that, he could have just gotten in the car and left. Sorry, but that was uncalled for.
So ignoring her completely would have been less rude? Ok, then.
Did he snap at her? Sure. Do I care or have sympathy? Not in the slightest. The press pack would’ve acted up whether they knew the statement/lawsuit was coming or not but they were completely blindsided which another reason I loved the timing of the news of it.
Royal Reporters rarely, if ever, shout questions pap style at these type of visits. Rhiannon knew this, yet she broke the line and rushed in to ask that patronizing question. Mind you, that is NEVER supposed to happen, especially after she had been granted an interview just a couple days prior.
But the rush to paint her as a victim is so fascinating though. What is it? That she’s a woman? Or that she’s a white woman, since some of the same folks feeling bad for Rhiannon getting check for breaking an understood rule, have zero sympathy for Meghan when the press fabricate supposed protocol breaches.
Thank you for this comment!
Agreed! As I stated above, she broke the ‘rules of engagement’ and ran up to Harry and shouted questions at him. She was out of line. But instead of being called out for breaking the rules, she’s being seen as a victim.
I don’t feel bad for her, the press aren’t the victims here. They’ve been free to write and say whatever they like about his wife and fabricate it as the truth and then act offended when he snaps back. Play stupid games win stupid prizes.
And I’m guessing the same people that bash Meghan and Harry for being “too Hollywood” are perfectly fine with this woman shouting a question to provoke him while he’s walking to his car like some kind of TMZ paparazzo outside a restaurant.
You would be right. I think it’s expected that the usual suspects will come in either with guns loaded or disingenuous dissertations in hand to side with whatever media source or personality is trying to throw shade or sh*t at the Sussexes.
Reporters in general are assholes. She was out of line and he called her out on it. Also, I’m sure he might have a stronger reaction than most given that papparazzi greatly contributed to his mother’s death.
I know lots of reporters. A small small minority of them are assholes. Most are people like me. I was a reporter for 2.5 years and I flat out loved the job. Every day I went somewhere new, met someone new and learned something new, every day! Loved that job so much. Then one day at the site of a 3-house fire, I was told to go ask one of the absolutely traumatized home owners, a mother of 3, (daddy serves) in absolute shock, sitting on what was left of her burnt back stairs in her nightgown, how she was feeling. I was so appalled and disgusted at the thought of shoving a mic in her face while she was wearing that look I quit on the spot. I wanted to hug that lady and I had no idea who she was. Loved the job, turned out I couldn’t do all of it.
I must have missed something. Is the reporter Mills criticizing Prince Harry for his brief speech and asking him what he hoped to accomplish from it? What was the content of his comments? If that was the case she was disrespectful and snotty. Otherwise why challenge him on a speaking engagement? I think that more context surrounding their brief exchange would be useful before passing judgement.
I’m with Harry on this. He was leaving and probably headed back to Meghan and wanted to get out. She knows the rules.
That was Roya Nikkah. She works for the Times.
Why are bullies always so surprised when their victims finally snap? Why do bullies expect their victims to take the high road and not respond to them? Why do bullies always cry foul and play victim after they’ve been called out or exposed? Sometimes you just gotta p*unch a bully in the face to get them to back off and leave you alone.
Harry did nothing wrong. The reporter was deliberately out of line.
THIS. 100%. Context is SO crucial here. She was baiting him, like others have said, and the question was passive-aggressive all the way. (Implication: “how’s a short conversation going to change anything” basically treating it like this is an Invictus event or Sentebale visit….. and of course this isn’t that.) So his reaction is very understandable because he knows exactly what she’s doing. The reporter intentionally provoked him, and “don’t behave like this” was a reasonable response to that kind of dick move.
The Sun or the Daily Mail had posted an article stated they had to ship vehicles to SA. They said it didn’t cost the taxpayers anything. The RR has a way of twisting things. Also Ingrid took a jab at Meghan being divorce vs Beatrice being a stepmom!
I believe they would have attacked them regards. Hell Meghan couldn’t enjoy her maternity leave. England is a cesspool. I hope the Sussex leave! They hate Meghan. William is pushing the cyber bullying again, what a joke. I have no respect for these people! Nothing but wasted space.
I wish Boring Bill would speak on cyber bullying and specifically point out the horrendous treatment of Meghan. That would be a huge win for the shit that’s been kicked up since Meghan’s introduction as Harry’s one and only. Then, the brothers will have a chance to recover, Chuck can stop the spoiled brat leaks and the Family can do some much needed healing. That would be a win-win. And shut up the racist reporters as a sign of unity.
The Daily Mail and its posters are a cesspool. England is beautiful. Stunning countrysides, antique castles and artwork, ancient cathedrals and exciting 21st century architecture, scones with jam, then cream and some of the best fish and chips in the world.
I would be shocked, since the leaks came from KP, then the reporters would say exactly how they came by the leaks.
The leaks seems to have stopped since the Sussexes move to Frogmore Cottage, wonder why?
And England still has a class system.
You know most of the dailyfail poster are middle aged white American women.
I’m white and I say the atittude of the press towards Meghan is RACIST!!! there’s no other way of putting it!! Openly, blatently RACIST!!! iMPERIALIST RACISM.. There, that’s my opinion..
Congrats to Harry for “snapping” at them… He should have scolded them sooner…
Imperialist racism, oh my! I’m laughing because the Royal Family – his very family & ancestors – destroyed our countries and murdered our people. He is of the same stock. The Duchess of Sussex would be wise to get all her ducks in a row, take their money (wipe out his stolen inheritance) and bounce. Bring some jewels back too, Meghan!!
LadyJax, Bingo!!! Sometimes a rude question deserves a retort in kind. I’m sure if William did this, there would be no public criticism at all, or praise for William, standing up to bullying, or whatever. Remember when a soldier started asking a demeaning question to then- President Clinton and Clinton reminding the soldier he was his Commander in Chief? Or when a foreign reporter asked a then campaigning Hillary Clinton what her husband thought about a matter and she responded that she was running for office, not Mr. Clinton. People who have power (or symbolic power like Harry) sometimes have to snap back. So this is truly a nothing burger to me.
Umm, what was wrong with his response? I approve.
People put their princes up on a pedestal they forget they are humans with feelings, needs and boundaries. They need to express themselves and show their feelings or else they will go mad. If the press were allies in the mental health initiative they would do best to remember that.
Rumblings he might also be suing over the phone hacking scandal, but that would be from over a decade ago.
That was a cheap shot and she deserved to be shot down by Harry.
Why is this a question pls? Everyone can see he did. She asked him about his work visit there and what he wanted to achieve/highlight or something and he gave a very rude answer. Maybe he misheard but I doubt it with the way he laughed and said “ask them” clearly pointing to the hospital. The laughing and his tone were more than rude… why are you there if you are going to act like that? Aren’t they supposed to be helping? Doesn’t he know the aim of his visit?
She did not ask him about his work, that’s what the interviews are for. She asked a very condescending question with the intention of undermining his “short” visit. He’s right, ask the people and the causes he was bringing attention to what THEY feel this visit does or doesn’t achieve if you are actually interested. She asked a flippant question paparazzi style that goes against the press proceedings of these tours (that are put in place to ask questions that they can actually give educated detailed answers to) and got a flippant answer in response.
It was Rhiannon Mills who is a Sky reporter. Meghan and Harry had given her an interview earlier in the tour. She knew the rules of engagement and was trying to ambush him- doorstepping style. It was when he was leaving an engagement so he had no obligation to answer her questions.
I’ve read (not seen evidence so can’t verify) that she tried similar ambush Meghan about her dad last August.
She has interviewed Harry before and said she knows he reads& remembers everything. So possible he knows about her nasty articles including one where she effectively said unless Meghan gives press (preferably her) an interview- ranting Thomas Snr should be given a platform as that’s only way for public to get to know her. I don’t blame him for not wanting to speak to Rhiannon unless it’s a scheduled interview.
That doesn’t explain his flippant laughing tone while saying ask them…. like he didn’t care about the issue at hand. you can mansplain all you want, but as a WoC, I found that distasteful.
The RR is the only one in the wrong here.
Forget WK they don’t do it justice, I think Harry and Meghan should champion the mental health and anti-bullying intiatives. There was a story on 60 minutes of Meghan growing up. A girl from her old highschool spoke of when she was getting bullied her freshman year, senior Meghan swooped in and told the bullies “No we don’t do that here!” This was wayback before any inkling or thought of becoming princess. I think it shows her true character.
Guess the RR have worked Harry’s last nerve cause he is now filed suit against the Sun and the Mirror
He should sue the Sun for they half-ass apology they published in the back pages, for lying about them not allowing workers to park in the Windsor car park.
She’s an experienced royal correspondent and she knows she’s not supposed to be doing this, especially as press on an official tour. The press gets a lot of access during these tours to power their distribution/clicks, and in “trade” attention goes to charities being promoted. The reason he sounds so astonished she’s even asking the question and tells her “ask them” is that if she wants more for her story, she’s supposed to be talking to the charity. They are supposed to be the story. Harry is doing his job as a ceremonial ambassador as she well knows. She’s gone off the reservation acting as though he’s pursuing some kind of policy agenda that she needs to “investigate.” Sure most royals would have just iced her and got on into the car, but the reporter was out of line.
Harry just sued The Sun and the Daily Mirror. Go Harry!
IMO- her question sounded pointed and rude. Like what was the point of such a short covo.
And he was appalled and irritated by it and was like well if you think the conversation was so pointless why don’t you ask them-
The reporter was out of line and so was Harry.
Harry statement after the first question…”ask them,” came across as offensive to me, I cannot explain it, it was almost as if the people/kids he just met with was not worth his time??? He, Harry, should have just kept his mouth shut. I find Harry’s statement disrespectful.
Harry is just like all the rest.
The British are over the top. Leave them alone. The world loves them even if you don’t. Focus on the one with the personality of paint drying whose husband loves English Roses!
Remember when Chuck told the BBC royal correspondent that he couldn’t stand him?
Remember the many times Willy has sneered at the press.
Remember when little Charlotte snapped at the royal press that they were not invited to her home. Remember when she stuck her tongue at the press and her mother thought it was hilarious.
They all hate the tabloid media.
Phone hacking? Perhaps the leaks didn’t come from the palace after all.
Wow, he suing over hacking. This has to date back years when they were hacking William and Kate. He’s clearly had enough and is fighting back to protect his family, good for him – someone needs to take a stand against the vile UK tabloids led by the scumbag Morgan.
This is a team effort, they are coming in at different angles at the 2 main rags that have been leading the way in the smear campaign.
Also this also means they have to prove where they got their information from – if they didn’t hack phones then someone in the palace is leaking (staff or another family member). Maybe someone who wasn’t told in advance of the lawsuits or Harry’s statement.
I remember when Jude Law was giving evidence at I think it was the Leveson enquiry and he discovered that a close family member was leaking stories about him to the press. I believe a judge can force the press to reveal their sources.
Meghan’s case isn’t going to go well for Evil Papa Smurf as the Mail on Sunday is going to be forced to reveal ALL their dealings with him over it inc if they gave him any money or other incentives.
There was a quote in a Times article that Meghan and Harry feel like the tabloids groomed and exploited her father. That they basically moved next door to him in the run up to the wedding. So they in a sense, weaponized her own father against her. I get why that feels unforgivable.
@DU, this is going to be a really interesting case, bring on Leveson2!!
I watched the clip three times and I am almost positive she did this on purpose to provoke him. She needed some kind of rude reaction from him to use it as a weapon after the statement, lawsuit, etc.. He was patronizing but he didn’t snap at her. He was more like – hey, I know what you’re doing, let’s NOT.
This happened before his statement and the announcement of the lawsuit. It wasn’t retaliation, it was just a typical snide, passive aggressive question.
Was it unprofessional on both their parts?
Sure.
Still not as gross as being friends with a pedophile a la Andrew.
Why can’t they focus on that instead of Harry?
Good for them. Sue them into bankruptcy, or at least until this evil kind of stories doesn’t make bank for them anymore because the legal fees eat up all their profit. They are causing so much damage to not only the royals but to society as a whole.
Wow ther lawsuits.. what’s Going on and why?
Guys, why od Harry after ale those years going to war with so many magazines? I understood df but now i’m lost
Everyone keeps saying she was patronizing. How? Im so confused.
So many things becoming more clear now. Remember a few weeks ago when word got out that Sussexes were working with PR firm Sunshine Sachs, we thought it was to rehab Meghan’s image and that it was a bad look and too Hollywood? Well now we know why they’re here’s and who will help them manage the press during this litigation. The tabloids had no inkling of this coming. Very masterful on the Sussexes part, and sure they know the worst is yet to come. Harry has a long memory and this hacking lawsuit is specifically about Piers Morgan. Just hope most if it drags out behind the scenes in court and they can just go about their lives while this is happening.
just wanted to comment that I am a big MH supporter.
my very first post after lurking forever
Meh he’s probably tired of being patronized as well. All the abuse and racist stuff being thrown at Meghan while reporters act like it’s no big deal must be exhausting.