MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th March, 2021) Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's tell-all interview with US talk show host Oprah Winfrey that first aired on Sunday night has sent shockwaves through both the United Kingdom and the United States, and experts told Sputnik that Buckingham Palace is poised to respond to the allegations of racism and a lack of mental health support.
During the almost two-hour interview, which was broadcast by CBS in the US and ITV in the UK one day later, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex said there was a "lack of support and lack of understanding" from Buckingham Palace as the couple, and in particular, Markle, faced a "constant barrage" of negative press coverage.
"I just didn't want to be alive anymore. And that was a very clear and real and frightening, constant thought," the Duchess of Sussex said.
Markle, who is mixed race, also revealed that there was concern in the royal family over the skin tone of the couple's first child, Archie, who was born in May 2019 and denied the title of prince.
"In those months when I was pregnant ... we have in tandem the conversation of 'he won't be given security,' 'he's not going to be given a title,' and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he's born," the Duchess of Sussex said.
Later in the interview, Prince Harry confirmed that these conversations took place, although said that he would not reveal any more details, as it would be "damaging" for the individuals involved.
Additionally, the Duchess of Sussex said that tabloid accusations that she made Kate Middleton, the wife of Prince Harry's brother William, cry in the run-up to the former's wedding were false, and instead claimed that "the reverse" took place.
In the UK, the interview became the most-watched program of 2021 to date, as more than 11 million viewers tuned in on Monday evening. The CBS screening of the interview in the United States brought in 17 million viewers and generated a huge buzz on social media.
"It was like a nuclear bomb on the royal family, basically declaring war on the royal family," David E. Johnson, the CEO of the US-based Strategic Vision PR Group, told Sputnik in an interview.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson was asked to comment on the racism accusations put forward by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex during a COVID-19 press briefing on Monday evening, although Johnson dodged the question and stated that he had the "highest admiration" for Queen Elizabeth II.
Even US President Joe Biden has been drawn into the debate, as his spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on Monday that the White House hails the "courage" of the Duchess of Sussex to speak out about the issues she has faced.
The interview, and its subsequent fallout, dominated the front pages of the UK newspapers on Monday and Tuesday, indicating that the media storm created by the most controversial royal interview since Princess Diana's 1995 sitdown with Martin Bashir of the BBC, is unlikely to die down in the near future.
REACTION DIFFERS ON EITHER SIDE OF ATLANTIC
The reaction to the interview in the United Kingdom and the United States has vastly differed, with viewers in the latter almost twice as likely to sympathize with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex than those in the UK, according to YouGov.
In a survey conducted by the pollster on Monday, just 12 percent of Britons said they have "a lot" of sympathy for Harry and Meghan, and a third of respondents said they had no sympathy at all for the couple.
According to UK-based media expert Anthony Burr, of Burr Media, Harry and Meghan's interview was extremely divisive and touched on several polarizing issues.
"This interview has been massively divisive. I can't think of a more divisive interview, ever. This has created chasms between countries, cultures, race, industries and tradition. We are now seeing arguments such as US vs. UK; celebrity vs. royalty, US media vs. UK media, Black vs. White, republicans vs. royalists; generation X vs. generation Z. It is playing out across the world through social media and almost every media platform," Burr told Sputnik.
Viewers on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean were far more supportive, as two-thirds of US respondents to a YouGov survey said they sympathized with the pair.
David Johnson said that the choice of Oprah Winfrey to host the interview was significant, noting that she is "America's most lovable personality," and said that a tougher interviewer would have asked more hard-hitting questions.
"They're both social friends with Oprah and it was not as hard-hitting of an interview as if they'd gone with another host in the United States. There were many follow-up questions that could have been asked that were not asked. A more persistent interviewer, for example, would really have hammered them nonstop about some of the inconsistencies in their story," Johnson remarked.
Several prominent UK media figures, such as the host of ITV's Good Morning Britain, Piers Morgan, have criticized Harry and Meghan for conducting the interview while Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, is in the hospital after undergoing a medical procedure for a pre-existing heart condition.
The Duchess of Sussex, during her interview with Oprah Winfrey, said that the queen was "wonderful" to her, but Morgan nevertheless slammed the couple on Monday morning.
"They've trashed his dad. They've trashed his brother. They've trashed his sister-in-law. They've trashed everything the Queen has worked so hard to maintain, the monarchy. And we're supposed to believe they're compassionate?" Morgan said during the live broadcast.
Queen Chioma Nworgu, a UK-based PR expert and media coach, told Sputnik that she had hoped the UK public and press would have shown more compassion and empathy with the couple following the airing of the interview.
"I expected more support, I expected that people would understand more, have empathy and compassion to a certain degree, even if it wasn't full on, but I thought there would be mixed feelings from the British public. But it was almost as if 'oh, just turn this off, this is just terrible, she's just awful, they're just victims, etc.,' so I was really surprised that more support didn't come through," Queen Chioma said.
The PR expert stated that she was "not surprised" that people within the royal family were eager to discuss the skin tone of Harry and Meghan's future children, although she added that it was disappointing to see that advancements made in other areas of society seemingly had not reached Buckingham Palace.
"It is sad that we're living in the 21st century and still dealing with this, because, as we've seen in a lot of corporate jobs, there's so much equality, and so many times we've seen the government standing up for individuals when it comes to equality, when it comes to gender issues, when it comes to women in the workplace. We've seen a lot of advancement, so I was expecting some of those advancements to occur in the royal family," Queen Chioma said.
MISSED OPPORTUNITY FOR ROYAL FAMILY
On Tuesday evening, the royal family issued a statement on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II, saying that Buckingham Palace was "saddened" to learn of the issues that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex faced.
In the statement, the royal family said that the allegations of racism were "concerning" but added that the matter would be dealt with "privately."
UK media expert Anthony Burr said that if Buckingham Palace wishes to bolster its support, Queen Elizabeth II would likely have to confront the accusations in a televised address, rather than a written statement.
"If Buckingham Palace wants this to swing in their favour, they should address these accusations in a televised address. And it should not be Charles or William, but the Queen. They may have not attacked her personally, but an institution which she has personally presided over for nearly 70 years, has been demonised. If the Queen addresses these points and does this well (which she always does) then I am sure the British public will back her as they have always done," he said.
Despite this, Burr said that the UK, and the monarchy, may come to regret not having eased Meghan Markle's transition into life as a member of the royal family.
"We, as a nation and as a monarchy, have really missed an opportunity here with Meghan. We should have embraced her, put a collective arm around her and made her feel like this was her new, adopted, country. Instead, she has left us hating everything we stand for, and now collectively, the world is looking at us as colonial pariahs ... Meghan could have been our ambassador for decades to come. Instead, she has become our fiercest critic," Burr remarked.
This sentiment was shared by UK-based PR expert Queen Chioma Nworgu, who said that the Duchess of Sussex could have become the face of a royal family willing to change with the times.
"I expected them to leverage the opportunity to allow her to be the face, as a woman of color, to show that diversity, to show 'we have grown, we are becoming more diverse, things are changing,' but now it's like we've gone ten steps backwards," she said.
DUKE, DUCHESS OF SUSSEX TO MAKE NAME IN US
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex left the UK in January 2020 after announcing their intention to step down as senior members of the royal family.
They first settled in Canada but moved to the US state of California nearly one year ago, and Harry revealed during Sunday's interview that the decision was made when Buckingham Palace said that their security detail would be removed.
In the months that followed, the couple signed media deals with both Netflix and Spotify to produce content for the streaming platforms, and Anthony Burr said that the pair were likely to focus on building their brand in the United States, rather than the United Kingdom.
"With this interview, Meghan and Harry have confirmed their position of living and working in the United States. Their earning power there will surely remain, unless they make some huge missteps now. Harry proved that by sealing the deals with Netflix and Spotify," Burr said, adding that more deals were likely to follow.
This sentiment was shared by Strategic Vision PR Group CEO David E. Johnson, who said that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex appeared to be cutting themselves off from the UK.
"It was basically to ingratiate themselves with the American public and to launch their careers here in America. It was almost as if they were cutting off the United Kingdom in many ways and focusing their message in a way that would resonate here in the United States more so than abroad," Johnson remarked.
As part of efforts to increase their exposure in the United States, Johnson said that Meghan Markle may return to acting. The pair is likely to also take part in racial and mental health initiatives and could release several more interviews or books in the future, the PR expert said.
According to Queen Chioma Nworgu, Harry and Meghan will likely appear more frequently on US television screens over the coming months but added that this may change should the couple reconcile with Buckingham Palace.
"Within the next three years, they will probably be back in the UK a lot more, that's what I really believe. I think for now, they're probably going to be seen more in American media and maybe the press in Canada, but eventually, home is home," Queen Chioma said.
Despite this, the UK press is unlikely to hold back in its negative coverage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle unless steps are taken towards calming the situation, the PR expert said.
"The press will never change, so the whole horror story in the media is never going to really be put out unless there is reconciliation, so I think they're going to have to work together," Queen Chioma remarked.
During Sunday's interview, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced that they are expecting the birth of their second child, a girl, this coming summer.
The couple has been fierce critics of the UK tabloid press and said in a letter this past April that they would no longer respond to any requests from journalists working for the Daily Mail, Sun, Mirror, and Express newspapers.
The UK-based Society of Editors, in a press release published on Monday, said that the UK media "is not bigoted" and accused the couple of failing to provide evidence that would substantiate their allegations.
Meghan's estranged father Thomas, who spoke to the ITV broadcaster on Tuesday morning, said that he did not agree with the claims that the royal family was racist, adding that he had "great respect" for the monarchy.
Thomas Markle, who said that he has not spoken to his daughter since 2018, also criticized the pair for proceeding with the interview while Prince Philip is in hospital.
