Meghan Markle, Prince Harry Are Already Rebranding? Royal Expert Thinks So
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are already making efforts to rebrand, according to one royal expert.
Sarah Hewson, TalkTV's royal editor, recently joined Vanessa Feltz for a discussion after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex released a one-minute clip highlighting their charity works between 2022 and 2023 for the Archewell Foundation. Some accused the Sussexes of stealing Kate Middleton's thunder, who released a video of her Christmas Baby Bank initiative just hours earlier.
Hewson acknowledged that the timing was somehow "convenient" because, normally, Archewell releases those videos in January. However, she believes there was another reason why Prince Harry and Markle released the video around this time of the year.
"I think this is more about rebranding of Harry and Meghan and wanting to end the year on a positive note and a reminder to people of what they're actually doing in California," Hewson said. "That their year hasn't just involved spats with the royal family or car chases or court cases, for an example. And this highlight reel shows us some of the work through their Archewell Foundation, and that's the charity that they set up when they left the royal family."
As for the video, Hewson found it "very warm." She noticed that there were a lot of hugs, and Markle was very hands-on with the organization.
However, British journalist and investigative reporter Tom Bower had a different take. He agreed when asked if it was a case of one-upmanship.
"Well, it is, but I mean, it's also a case of vanity playing by the Sussexes, who seem to want to make the world believe that they're the greatest charitable givers in the world. But I don't think it really comes off very well, myself."
Archewell Foundation lost $11 million in donations in 2022 compared to 2021. Royal commentator Kinsey Schofield, author of "R is for Revenge Dress," was convinced that the drop in donations reflected the Sussexes' declining popularity. She also said the royal couple was to blame because they talked so much about themselves instead of other people's real problems.
"Harry and Meghan are so fixated on their own problems that it's hard to invest in them," Schofield said. "It's hard to invest in their charities because they spend so much time talking about themselves."
An insider told TMZ that the declining donations did not reflect the foundation's financial status. The charity is reportedly an organization and not a corporation, and the earnings can't be measured in profits. Sources told the outlet that the charity ended the year with over $8 million in the bank.
