From the moment news of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s relationship broke, the former actress has endured near-constant scrutiny and criticism from the British tabloid media.
The endless criticism from both the press and her in-laws has likely taken a tremendous psychological toll on Meghan, but only once has she spoken out against these attacks.
We’re talking, of course, when Meghan sat down with Oprah Winfrey to share her account of her time living in the UK.
That was the only time Meghan explicitly admonished the royal, but unsurprisingly, there were times when she attempted to control the narrative more subtly.
As you may have heard, journalist Tom Bower has written a scandalous new book titled Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsors.
And as you might have guessed from the title, Bower’s latest is basically a 540-page best-selling article that seems to have no purpose other than to confirm existing reader biases against Meghan.
The heavy tome is loaded with outrageous (and highly dubious) accusations, such as Bower’s claim that the Queen expressed euphoria after learning that Meghan would not be able to attend Prince Philip’s funeral.
A new excerpt published by Page Six this week takes us back to the early days of Harry and Meghan’s relationship.
It seems the couple were justifiably upset by tabloid criticism that seemed to capitalize on racial prejudice against Meghan that is surprisingly prevalent in the UK.
Bower writes that Harry’s former press agent, Jason Knauf, agreed to issue a statement on the prince’s behalf “condemning the media for their portrayal of Meghan.”
“Harry dictated Knauf’s feelings into a statement. Engaging Knauf with a riddle, Meghan demanded that the statement reflect the parallel between her potential fate and Diana’s,” Bower alleges.
“Knauf suggested that overdramatizing Meghan’s anguish would backfire, but Harry was adamant. If Meghan’s wish to be equated with Diana was not fulfilled, Harry insisted, she would probably lose her. Knauf agreed.
Bower claims that Harry turned to Prince William for support, but William “hesitated… Much to William’s chagrin, Harry was following Meghan’s orders. That was reckless.
The final version of the statement did not mention Diana by name, but did allude to the tragedy that took her life and suggested there were fears Meghan would suffer a similar fate.
“My girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subjected to a wave of abuse and harassment,” read the warning press release that was issued in November 2016.
“Prince Harry is concerned for Ms. Markle’s safety and is deeply disappointed that he was unable to protect her… This is not a game, this is her life and his.”
It should be noted that Jason Knauf is the guy who started the investigation into Meghan’s “harassment” of Kensington Palace staff.
That turned out to be an embarrassing burger for royalty, so Knauf might not be the most reliable source.
As for Bower, he admitted that his goal in writing this book is to bring about Meghan’s downfall, which is why he’s definitely not the most reliable source.
Anything this guy says should be taken with a grain of salt, or simply dismissed entirely as the desperate rantings of an increasingly irrelevant gimmick.
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