Los Angeles, April 20 (IANS) The UK’s Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle who have relocated to California after stepping down as senior royals, have told the British tabloid press they were ending all co-operation with them, it was reported on Monday.
In a letter issued on Sunday to the editors of the Sun, the Daily Mail, the Daily Mirror and the Daily Express newspapers and websites, the couple’s public relations representative said the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had taken the step due to “distorted, false or invasive” stories, the BBC reported.
In the letter, the representative wrote it was “gravely concerning that an influential slice of the media” has printed “distorted, false or invasive” articles.
“There is a real human cost to this way of doing business and it affects every corner of society,” it said.
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have watched people they know – as well as complete strangers – have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue.”
The new policy will apply to the four newspapers, their Sunday editions and associated websites.
The Daily Star, which was not specifically mentioned, is published by the same group that publishes the Mirror and Express titles, said the BBC report.
Outlining the new policy of “no corroboration and zero engagement” with all the publications that received it, the letter said the measure would also protect the couple’s communications team “from the side of the industry that readers never see”.
“This policy is not about avoiding criticism,” the letter continued.
The ban on engagement with the papers will mean that the couple’s PR team will no longer even answer calls from the papers asking them to confirm whether claims made about the Duke and Duchess true or not.
The letter comes ahead of a court hearing this week in a legal case Meghan has brought against the publisher of the Mail over the publication of a letter written to the Duchess by her estranged father.
The couple officially stepped back as senior working members of the Royal Family at the end of March as part of a transition following an announcement of their intention to become financially independent in January.
–IANS
ksk/