Tabloid Culture and the Royal Family

To the general public, basic privacy is often not something we think twice about.

In Prince Harry’s new memoir, Spare, he reveals that both his father and brother fed stories to the British tabloids about him in order to keep their own images free from negative press. Yet, the mere fact that this was necessary exemplifies that there is a much larger problem at hand: tabloid culture. For the Royal Family, privacy is a foreign concept. The public’s constant need for every detail of their lives fuels dangerous media practices and often leads to over-exaggerated or false stories being published for substantial monetary gain. 

The relentless nature of the British press for coverage of the Royal Family is not a new phenomenon. Prince Harry recalls his late mother, Princess Diana, constantly struggling to escape the invasive demands of the media. She was given the nickname the “People’s Princess” due to the public’s obsession with her life. Shortly before her death in 1997, she easily became the most photographed person in the world. Paparazzi would offer over $600,000 for a single photo of Princess Diana. Even in death, tabloid culture remains a prominent aspect of her legacy. It has been widely speculated that the press is one of the contributing causes of her death. In March of 1994, Princess Diana and her driver were being chased through Paris by the paparazzi. During this pursuit, the driver lost control of the car and crashed into the wall of a tunnel. As first responders arrived at the scene, the paparazzi were still there, trying to get in one last click. Princess Diana died later that night. 

There is clearly plenty of monetary gain for the media when covering the Royal Family, yet the Royals may have something to gain as well: relevance. The outdated nature of the British Monarchy makes their political decisions often questioned by the public, yet society’s intense need for information on their personal lives, makes their relevance and likeability soar, regardless of political policy. King Charles currently has a 73% approval rating, whereas U.S. President Joe Biden currently holds a 40% approval rating. 

Prince Harry has arguably reclaimed his privacy in his “tell-all” memoir. He now holds the power to tell his own story by revealing details of his personal life before the press could. As media consumers, most people are well aware of the fabrication and often false nature of tabloid stories, yet we continue to buy them. Adrian Bingham, professor of history at the University of Sheffield states, “The press knows that we as readers and consumers and viewers- we’re hypocrites because, sometimes, we might castigate the press for its intrusion, but they know that we will buy the newspapers, whether it’s true or not.” 

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Sources: 

https://www.npr.org/2023/01/08/1147737198/how-the-u-k-royals-and-british-tabloids-became-int erdependent 

https://time.com/4914324/princess-diana-anniversary-paparazzi-tabloid-media/

https://parade.com/1254703/jessicasager/how-did-princess-diana-die/ https://www.surveymonkey.com/curiosity/poll-uk-monarchy/

Cover photo courtesy of CNN.