The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan, discovered themselves on the centre of a media storm in New York recently, as they were pursued via the streets by paparazzi. The incident has reignited the talk surrounding the couple’s relationship with the media, with some drawing parallels to the tragic dying of Princess Diana.
According to a spokesperson for the couple, Harry, Meghan, and her mom have been subjected to a two-hour car chase involving “highly aggressive” photographers, putting their lives in danger. The experience was reminiscent of the events main up to the fatal Paris car crash in which Princess Diana was killed in 1997, a tragedy that Harry has usually expressed fears of repeating, reported Bangkok Post.
However, the New York Police Department’s response to the incident appeared to downplay its severity. A police spokesperson acknowledged that photographers made the group’s transport “challenging,” but added that there were “no reported collisions, summonses, injuries, or arrests.”
Some newspapers reported that one celebrity news company concerned within the chase accused the couple’s safety detail of behaving in a way “that could be perceived as reckless.” In an interview on ITV, an anonymous photographer involved in the incident claimed that the couple’s automobile entourage was responsible for any danger, stating that their driver was “making it a catastrophic expertise.”
Taxi driver Sukhcharn Singh, who briefly had the couple and Meghan’s mother in his cab as they tried to outwit the photographers, advised Reuters they looked scared but did not assume there can be an accident. This has led to accusations from the couple’s critics, notably on social media, that they had exploited the incident for their own functions.
Columnist Camilla Tominey wrote in the Daily Telegraph that the couple’s first assertion was “laced with the kind of hyperbole we’ve come to count on from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex when alleging media intrusion into their lives.” Meanwhile, former politician and broadcaster Nigel Farage took to Twitter to call Harry and Meghan “frauds.”
The royal household has remained silent on the matter, as is customary. However, Premiere in Britain remains divided. Some, like retired lawyer Nick Williams, expressed doubts about the veracity of Prince Harry’s statement. Others, similar to authorized administrator Paris Smith, sympathised with the couple, stating, “I’ve at all times loved them, so I feel for them.”