The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have told the editors of several major U.K. tabloids they will no longer engage with those media outlets.
Prince Harry and Meghan sent a letter Sunday to editors with the Sun, the Daily Mirror, the Daily Mail, and the Daily Express, writing they would no longer “offer themselves up as currency for an economy of clickbait and distortion.”
The couple, who has embarked on a new life in Los Angeles with their 11-month-old son Archie, accused the tabloids of publishing stories that are “distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason.” Beginning immediately, “there will be no corroboration and zero engagement.”
“It is gravely concerning that an influential slice of the media, over many years, has sought to insulate themselves from taking accountability for what they say or print — even when they know it to be distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason,” the letter reads.
The couple also affirmed their support for a free press but took issue with tabloid-style reporting, which they claim has a “real human cost.”
“Media have every right to report on and indeed have an opinion on The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it can’t be based on a lie,” the letter reads.
Harry and Meghan previously established a more measured relationship with the press when they announced their decision in January to step back as senior royals and said they would no longer participate in the Royal Rota, a pool reporting system. Additionally, Meghan also had an issue with the Mail on Sunday in 2019, suing the outlet after it published a letter she wrote to her father.
Harry and Meghan “will not communicate with, respond to, or answer any enquiries from journalists working for these four newspaper operations,” according to ITV.
