As trivial as the tabloid’s obsession with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle truly is, the couple deserves a pat on the back for their efforts to show a united front in the public spotlight.
There are writers out there who have dedicated their careers to crafting nasty headlines about Harry and Meghan’s relationship, and yet, the couple is yet to falter in giving these publications actual content. Genuine or not, their affectionate relationship is impressive.
In fact, the pair seem to be playing into the media obsession with their own jokes, as seen in Meghan’s latest Mother’s Day Instagram post.
She shared a photo of herself carrying her two kids, Archie and Lilibet, with the caption poking fun at a classic motherhood trope. “Happy Mother’s Day! Cheers to juggling it all with joy!”, Meghan wrote.
Meghan certainly wasn’t the only mother in the world sharing a photo of herself with their kids, but that didn’t stop the Daily Mail and The Daily Telegraph from pouncing on an opportunity for an irrelevant article.
One headline by the Daily Telegraph read: “Meghan shares ‘mama mountain’ pic amid scathing TV roast.”
This was referring to a recent Saturday Night Live skit that joked about Harry and Meghan living in the US after being estranged from the British Royals.
Another headline, from the Daily Mail said, “Meghan Markle’s Mother’s Day post includes a detail that proves she isn’t the relatable mother-of-two she likes to seem”, with the article’s authors going on to clarify that her son’s pricey £61 pair of pajamas is the detail.
I can assure these writers that nobody is under the assumption that the Duchess of Sussex buys her son’s PJs from Wal-Mart like the majority of American parents. The fact that The Daily Mail took the time to publish an entire article around the subject was a waste of time.
The headlines certainly don’t stop there. Anything that Meghan and Harry do seems to be fair game.
Meghan’s Mother’s Day post came soon after she was spotted at Beyonce’s Cowboy Carter tour, where she and Harry were seen kissing and being affectionate. Their attendance sparked a media frenzy, where many were hungry for content about the couple.
I would have guessed that the world would be tired of reading more about these two at this point, but many media outlets seemed to believe otherwise, as the couple’s concert date was written about widely.
The pair were all smiles, and based on the images, it would be pretty hard for anyone to find something negative to write.
Whether or not you believe that their relationship dynamic is a public facade or if it’s genuine affection for one another is beside the point. At the very least their ability to come across as loving and supportive in the face of immense media pressure is worth an analysis.
I can’t imagine it’s easy for celebrities to see constant headlines taking a dig at their relationship or personality, and there’s been plenty of that for both Harry and Meghan.
One recent headline from Geo News reads: “Prince Harry is facing a huge marriage test with Meghan Markle.” Another one from the Daily Express, reads: “Prince Harry and Meghan Markle unveil major staff shake-up after tumultuous few months”.
Despite these digs, we’ve not seen much, if any, outward disdain for each other from Harry and Meghan. Certainly not to the level that other celebrities have accidentally slipped up for tabloid gain.
Think of how many celebrity couples have been under media pressure to perform and couldn’t hold it together in the midst of an argument. Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck. Justin Bieber and Hailey Bieber. Even Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have been caught on camera fighting, despite fans still believing their relationship is strong.
Perhaps Harry and Meghan have been under so much media scrutiny that they’ve mastered the art of composure.
Is this composed public persona all just a game? Well, if it is, Harry and Meghan seem to be winning, and it makes the tabloid’s attempts at destruction all the more futile.