From the moment that news of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s relationship went public, the former actress has endured near-constant scrutiny and criticism from the British tabloid media.
The endless nit-picking 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, about when Meghan sat down with Oprah Winfrey to share her account the time she spent living in the UK.
That was the only time that Meghan explicitly admonished the royals, but not surprisingly, there were times when she attempted to control the narrative in more subtle ways.
As you may have heard by now, journalist Tom Bower has authored a scandalous new book entitled 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 hit piece that seems to serve no purpose other than confirming readers’ existing biases against Meghan.
The weighty tome is loaded with scandalous (and highly dubious) allegations, such as Bower’s claim that the Queen expressed her elation after learning that Meghan would not be able to attend the funeral of Prince Philip.
A new excerpt published by Page Six this week takes us all the way back to the early days of Harry and Meghan’s relationship.
It seems the couple was justifiably upset at tabloid criticism that seemed to capitalize on the racially-based prejudice against Meghan that’s so shockingly prevalent in the UK.
Bower writes that Harry’s former press agent Jason Knauf agreed to issue a statement on the prince’s behalf “damning the media for their description of Meghan.”
“Harry dictated the sentiments for Knauf to fashion into a statement. Committing Knauf to a conundrum, Meghan demanded that the statement should reflect the parallel between her potential fate and Diana’s,” Bower alleges.
“Knauf suggested that over-dramatizing Meghan’s distress would backfire, but Harry was adamant. If Meghan’s wish to be equated with Diana was not satisfied, insisted Harry, he would probably lose her. Knauf acquiesced.”
Bower claims that Harry turned to Prince William for support, but William “hesitated … To William’s regret, Harry was obeying Meghan’s orders. That was unwise.”
The final version of the statement did not mention Diana by name, but did allude to the tragedy that took her life and suggest that there were fears of Meghan suffering a similar fate.
“My girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment,” read the cautionary press release that was issued in November of 2016.
“Prince Harry is worried about Ms. Markle’s safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her … This is not a game — it is her life and his.”
It should be noted that Jason Knauf is the guy who launched the investigation into Meghan’s “bullying” of Kensington Palace staff.
That turned out to be an embarrassing nothingburger for the royals, so Knauf might not be the most reliable source.
As for Bower, he’s admitted that his goal in writing this book is to bring about Meghan’s downfall, so he’s definitely not the most reliable source.
Everything this guy says should be taken with several grains of salt — or just dismissed entirely as the desperate ravings of an increasingly irrelevant hack.