After announcing their shocking decision to step down from their role as senior members of the royal family, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have revealed that moving forward, their relationship with the media is going to change.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex say that in 2020, they will be changing how they work with the media to make sure there is diverse and open access to their work. They have amended their policies to “reflect their new roles” in the royal family, and they hope the change will enhance access and give them the ability to share information more freely with members of the public.
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“After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen. It is with your encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that we feel prepared to make this adjustment. We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages. This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity. We look forward to sharing the full details of this exciting next step in due course, as we continue to collaborate with Her Majesty The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Duke of Cambridge and all relevant parties. Until then, please accept our deepest thanks for your continued support.” – The Duke and Duchess of Sussex For more information, please visit sussexroyal.com (link in bio) Image © PA
Harry and Meghan revealed on the Sussex Royal website that the adjustment will be a phased approach as they “settle into the new normality of their updated roles.” With this new relationship with the media, Harry and Meghan hope to “engage with grassroots media organizations and young, up-and-coming journalists,” and they plan to invite “specialist media” to specific events to give them greater access to Harry and Meghan’s cause-driven activities so they can widen the spectrum of news coverage.
The couple also plans to provide access at key moments and events to “credible media outlets” who are focused on objective news reporting, and they will continue to share information via their official communications channels.
Harry and Meghan also revealed that they will no longer participate in the Royal Rota system. The couple explained that the Royal Rota system was established 40 years ago as a way of giving print and broadcast media outlets in the UK exclusive inside access to the official engagements of members of the royal family.
BREAKING: Buckingham Palace has responded to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s announcement that they are stepping down as senior members of the royal family. https://t.co/ZHSNYtUwbI
— HuffPost (@HuffPost) January 8, 2020
“Under this system, the rota, or pool, gives these British media representatives the opportunity to exclusively cover an event, on the understanding that they will share factual material obtained with other members of their sector who request it. The current system predates the dramatic transformation of news reporting in the digital age,” said Meghan and Harry.
The couple said that the core group of UK outlets with Royal Rota access will remain the “predominant news source” through which other media organizations around the world receive content about official engagements of members of the royal family.
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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also explained that they elected to change their media policy to reflect their change as members of the royal family with financial independence, and their “wish to reshape and broaden access to their work.”
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