Meghan and Harry’s popularity is in the gutter… they must build bridges with royals – not burn them, warn experts
WITH King Charles and Princess Kate forced to step back from duties in recent weeks, the Royal Family is looking short of numbers.
Now, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been told a "golden opportunity" to prove their worth is staring them in the face - if they can cut out the jibes.
Having recently hired a UK-based PR guru to fix their "popularity problem", Harry is said to be open to returning to royal duty to ease the burden on his father while he undergoes cancer treatment.
Meghan, meanwhile, is reportedly preparing for a 'relaunch' in Britain to boost publicity for their foundation, Archewell, and spearhead a new project.
Industry experts tell The Sun that with Kate also recovering from abdominal surgery, the Sussexes must seize the chance to use their "Hollywood" power to back the embattled Royal Family and carve out a path towards reconciliation.
However, after today's jibe over Kate's photo-editing saga, they warn Harry, 39, and Meghan, 42, need to reign in their "keyboard warrior" pals - or risk torpedoing their rebrand altogether.
As one royal expert warned: "Their popularity has sunk almost below ground, and that’s where it will stay."
The royals looked thin in numbers at the Commonwealth Day service yesterday, as Prince William and Queen Camilla appeared in place of the monarch, who appeared via video message.
Overshadowing the event was a bizarre internet storm surrounding the Princess of Wales, who released a statement admitting she had manipulated a Mother's Day photo of herself alongside her three children.
Today, the royals were further hit after members of Harry and Meghan' team insisted the Sussexes would "never make the same mistake" - despite being called out in the past over discrepancies in their Christmas card.
The remark - which followed catty jibes from Meghan's 'cheerleader' Omid Scobie on social media - will do little to repair the their fractious relationship with the Palace and Harry's family.
However, it may also raise eyebrows with their newly recruited UK-based PR expert, who will join ahead of the launch of a "new commercial venture that the Duchess has been working on for many months", according to the .
PR boss Jack Izzard, CEO of Rhizome Media, tells The Sun: “We’ll probably never know whether Harry and Meghan got a twinge of pleasure from Kate’s blushes.
"But what they should definitely get out of the Kensington Palace cock-up is a PR opportunity.
“A supportive word here, a gentle nod towards the importance of Kate’s privacy there - this is a chance to offer a subtle olive branch to the Cambridges.
“And done right, it can be totally in tune with one of the Sussexes’ favourite themes - a call for the conspiracy theorists and keyboard warriors to lay off.”
Slimmed down royals
Since ascending to the throne last year, the King has pushed on with his plans to 'slim down' the number of working royals.
But with both Charles, 75, and Princess Kate, 42, out of action, commentators have pointed out an occassional shortage on the ground since the Queen's death.
Needless attacks
However, for their UK image overhaul to succeed, royal experts insist they must call off "attack dogs" like Omid Scobie - often described as the Sussexes’s “mouthpiece”.
This week, the journalist commented on the social media site X that the Princess of Wales’s decision to photoshop the picture she put out on Mother’s Day made it “impossible” for the royal PR machine to regain the public’s trust.
That sort of behaviour, royal expert Angela Levin argues, means Meghan and Harry can’t be trusted.
She tells The Sun: “Having a photoshopped photograph is absolutely nothing about telling lies.
“The most important thing is that you can trust people, and I don’t believe you can trust Harry and Meghan.
“Meghan only wants to come here because it will increase her popularity in getting work, she hopes.”
Small steps
Even if Meghan did offer an olive branch to Kate, it does not mean she is likely to give up her new life in California.
She and Harry are focused on their non-profit organisation Archewell and various media projects.
Nick Ede says: “I don’t think this is going to happen in the short term - there is too much at stake for both parties and not enough water under the bridge to forget the allegations made against them.
"At this present time both need to carve out their own paths, which Meghan and Harry are doing by concentrating on Archewell and creating compelling content."
Many people in Britain still harbour negative feelings towards the Duke and Duchess of Sussex due to the comments they have made about the Royal Family, including suggesting the institution is racist.
Angela does not think there is any sign of that chill thawing.
She concludes: “Nobody wants them anymore than they did before.
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"Their popularity has sunk almost below ground, and that’s where it will stay.
“Most people who are contacting the Palace, and I know that, are full of praise for Catherine and feel sorry that she has been so badly treated."
WHY WERE 'KILL NOTICES' ISSUED FOR KATE'S PHOTO?
News agencies ordered a "kill notice" on the picture late Sunday night.
The removal orders were sent after "manipulation" on the image was discovered.
AP's order said the reason for killing the story was: "At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image."
The order then directs those who have used the photo to remove it from all platforms, including social.
Agence France-Press ordered the "mandatory kill" due to an "editorial issue" and directed that the image may no longer be used.
Reuters said the photo “has been withdrawn following a post publication review.”
Getty Images said: “For editorial reasons, please remove the following image(s) from your system and do not use in any manner.”
Getty said its picture desk "identified a problematic image" provided by the palace and removed it from its site "in accordance with our editorial policy."
PA said: "Like other news agencies, PA Media issued the handout image provided by Kensington Palace of the Princess of Wales and her children in good faith yesterday.
"We became aware of concerns about the image and we carried a report about it last night, and made clear that we were seeking urgent clarification about the image from Kensington Palace.
"In the absence of that clarification, we are killing the image from our picture service."
Each of the news agencies have their own editorial guidelines which govern how they treat images.
AP says that pictures "must always tell the truth" and that it does not alter or manipulate the content of a photograph in any way.
Its guidelines say: "The content of a photograph must not be altered in PhotoShop or by any other means. No element should be digitally added to or subtracted from any photograph."
However, AP says minor adjustments are allowed, they include cropping, colour adjustments, and light adjustments.