Meghan Markle, Prince Harry's Strategy Doesn't Align With Their Status, More Akin To C-List Celebrity: Expert
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's strategy of promoting themselves was recently compared to that of a C-list ex-reality TV contestant.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex recently received intense backlash after the release of Omid Scobie's new book "Endgame" because the author was dubbed their "mouthpiece."Several accused them of leaking the stories to Scobie, and some critics brought back the rumors about Markle allegedly faking her pregnancy when she was expecting Archie. Amid all the issues, GoUp's PR expert Edward Coram-James weighed in on the royal couple's PR strategy and said it was "puzzling" that they chose a "Captain Chaos brand persona."
He claimed that the Sussex brand was left with "very little currency" and noted that those who went for a "wrecking ball approach" rarely ended up retaining it, so he was surprised that Prince Harry and Markle used it.
"The Sussexes are senior British royals. Every PR strategy known to man was available to them, and they could easily have established themselves as diligent, serious filmmakers who would have seamlessly rubbed shoulders with Kings, A-list actors and presidents alike," Coram-James told Express.
"Instead, the strategy that they chose to remain relevant is one more akin to a C-list ex-reality TV contestant, who may feel that the only way to remain within the public eye is to constantly generate scandal-related headlines."
For the PR expert, the Sussexes' "strategy didn't align with their status." He noted that "when you punch down, you usually demote yourself" before explaining how that affected the royal couple's image.
"As such, the Sussexs have gone from being treated like, well, the hybrid of Hollywood royalty and actual royalty that they are, to being treated like tabloid fodder," he concluded.
Body language expert Judi James also made a similar opinion about Markle getting demoted from being royalty to a celebrity when she made her red carpet return at the 2023 Variety Power Of Women at Mother Wolf on Nov. 16, 2023. Markle's assistant was seen signaling her to move forward, but she continued to pose for the cameras.
"Her moment of A-list stardom has been sullied by the hand creeping into shot and the implied low status of being ushered along," James explained. "Royals don't get ushered, and this does look like a small clash of status behaviors for Meghan the Duchess versus Meghan the 'Suits' actress."
The expert pointed out, however, that Prince Harry's wife managed to handle the incident without losing her poise.
Meanwhile, many believe that Markle could drop her own book after Prince Harry's "Spare." According to Christopher Andersen, a critically acclaimed royal author and commentator, the former actress "has a book to write" and has been "inclined to say what she wishes to say and be pretty forthright."
