Prince Harry’s crusade against the British tabloids

Harry’s appearance in London’s High Court was above all exceptional. At lunchtime, not only royal fans but workers from nearby offices in this busy area of ​​the center of the British capital peeked through the glass doors to see the king’s youngest son.

The process against The Mirror is just one of the active cases that confront Prince Harry with other publishing groups such as The Sun and the Daily Mail.

And in that sense, the youngest son of King Carlos III has been consistent. He blames them for most of his misfortunes. The most painful, the death of his mother, Princess Diana, in a traffic accident in Paris while she was being chased by paparazzi.

He is so committed to forcing a transformation of the tabloid press that he has said his mission in life is to change the landscape of tabloid media, which he accused of “having blood on their hands.”

He has in his favor, a lot of money and the power that comes from being a public figure as recognized as divisive, at least in the United Kingdom.

Harry – who moved to California with his wife Meghan Markle in 2020, trying to get away from the press – broke his relationship with the royal family and, in this case, the local press claims, ignored his father’s advice, who would have requested not to go to court.

So true to his conviction, he became the first active member of the royal family since the 19th century to sit in the dock to give testimony in order to expose his truth.

“Illegal practices such as hacking phones and obtaining private data through deception were widespread in the British press, and not just in the tabloids,” says Simon Hinde, director of journalism at the University of the Arts London.

“Journalism needs to be saved”

His battle against the tabloids is not new. He makes this clear in both his memoir ‘Spare’ and the Netflix documentary series.

At Court, Harry went an extra step. He accused the tabloids of tapping phones on an “industrial scale.” According to his statements, at least three tabloid newspapers committed this crime between 1996 and 2010.

In the case against Mirror Group Newspapers, according to Harry, in the aforementioned period, his media published 147 articles for which they used illegal tools such as interception of his calls, access to his voice messages and the hiring of private investigators to obtain information. exclusively about his movements.

Of these, 33 were selected by him to prove in London Court that the Mirror media crossed red lines to get stories they wouldn’t otherwise have gotten.

The prince claimed unwarranted persecution since he was a child, affecting all aspects of his life, including his illnesses, his family, his love relationships, and his time in military service.

Each of Harry’s accusations was challenged by Andrew Green, the Mirror’s lawyer, who denied that journalists used illegal practices to obtain those exclusives, which, Harry maintains, also created a public image of him as a drug addict and unintelligent.

However, claiming that the government and the press are “hitting rock bottom” was one of Harry’s most controversial accusations because it broke with the neutrality in politics and state affairs that the royal family must maintain.

“Democracy fails when your press fails to analyze and hold the government accountable and instead chooses to sleep with them so they can guarantee the status quo,” he remarked.

The power of the tabloids

Harry stated in court that this legal battle is in honor of his wife and, without a doubt, for the memory of his mother.

After Diana’s death, the tabloids and their paparazzi promised to break with illegal practices and the relentless persecution of the ‘royals’.

At present, it could be said that the coverage of members of the monarchy, especially the youngest, is much more respectful. Generally, there are agreements with the press about what can and cannot be covered.

“I think there is more awareness of how intrusive some tabloids and especially photographers can be. And there is possibly more acceptance in the tabloid world that some practices are illegal and bad. But they need scoops and they will continue to do everything they can.” possible to get them,” adds the director of The Foreign Press Association, Deborah Bonetti.

The big difference between the tabloids and the media in general lies in their news agendas. The former are obsessed with celebrities, rumors, and scandals.

The power of these sensationalist media was such that, more than 20 years ago, politicians, and especially candidates for prime minister, were more concerned with winning their support than their proposals. A wink cover of one of these translated into millions of votes.

“Tabloid sales have fallen dramatically since the days of Diana, but they still exert a disproportionate cultural influence on their audience. For example, the BBC often follows the agenda of the tabloids,” says Hinde.

Precisely, the BBC illustrates the transformation of the tabloids. “When some of these stories ran 20 years ago, the Daily Mirror was selling 2 million copies a day, while ABC’s most recent circulation figures show sales of around 280,000.”

What’s next in the court process

After testimony from other celebrity plaintiffs is completed, the judge will make a decision on whether Mirror Group Newspapers is guilty. Being a civil case, there would be a million-dollar financial compensation.

“Harry is on a crusade, but it hasn’t gone very well for him. His tabloid obsession stems from what he has called a traumatic childhood. In recent years, however, his voice has faded a bit and he’s not I’m sure how he plans to triumph against the power of the tabloids united against him. Don Quixote comes to mind,” warns Bonetti.

Even if Harry loses, he will have kept his promise to expose what he considers to be his truth.