On March 7th, 2021, the famous former Royal couple Meghan Markle and Prince Harry sat down with Oprah Winfrey to do a tell-all interview about their rocky experience being a part of the Royal family. This interview revealed so much about the unfortunate and saddening events that happened behind the scenes. From a family member raising questions concerning their baby’s skin color, to the couple being left without any form of security, they really went through a great deal of pain. I’ve been thinking about how the media has portrayed Meghan Markle and want to discuss how it’s been detrimental to her mental health, and what her suffering symbolizes.
So, let’s began with how the media first framed Meghan. At the beginning of Markle and Harry’s relationship, the media loved Meghan. They absolutely adored her and talked about how happy they were that someone was going to modernize the Royal family. But then there was a huge shift- media outlets decided to change the narrative to a more spiteful tone, criticizing everything she did. Meghan revealed in the interview the difference between how the media portrayed her and the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton. For example, when Kate was holding her baby bump the media said how wonderful and precious she was. Then when Meghan did it, the press questioned why she was holding her bump, saying she was doing it too much.
In the interview, she discusses how her mental health was at its worst during these times. She said there was even a point where she simply did not want to live anymore. The media continued to bash her and frame her as a villain. As the media continued to do this, the Royal family did nothing to at least try to decrease the bad coverage of her. When Prince Andrew was caught in a very controversial scandal not too long ago, the Royal family did everything to hinder his bad press coverage.
Meghan also explained how she never has felt like this before, and that she needed help. According to Meghan, The Royal family said she couldn’t get help because it wouldn’t look good for their image. When Harry and Meghan departed from their Royal duties, they were left without any kind of protection and security.
After running down the scope of Meghan in the media, it symbolizes how media outlets portray certain things to push their own agendas. It also symbolizes how you never know what is going on behind the scenes of someone’s life. I know it may look all very glamorous and exciting, but sometimes the glitz and glamour can come with a price. You can end up losing everything, and especially losing your self-identity in the process can take a toll on your mental health.
As we witnessed in this interview, we all would never have expected that she went through something as sad as this. So, whether you believe her or not, just remember to check in on your own mental health in check and make sure you get help if you are going through something that you know you cannot go through alone.