Prince Harry Must 'Stop Punching' if He Wants to Achieve His Aims

Prince Harry must "step out of the limelight for a bit" if he "wants the U.K. press to stop being unkind to Meghan," according to a public relations professional.

The Duke of Sussex is suing three tabloid newspaper groups in the United Kingdom and told ITV the lawsuits were part of his "life's work" to reform the British media.

He has four current media lawsuits, including three over allegations of phone hacking against Mirror Group Newspapers, Rupert Murdoch-owned News Group Newspapers, and Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday and Mail Online.

Harry has an ongoing libel lawsuit against The Mail on Sunday. Some commentators have raised doubts about whether his litigations will achieve his aim of transforming the country's media culture.

Edward Coram James, chief executive of PR agency Go Up, told Newsweek: "If Harry really wants the U.K. press to stop being unkind to Meghan, then there is only one thing that he should do about it. Step out of the limelight for a bit. If Harry and Meghan truly want the press to stop criticizing them, then they need to lay low. The press cycle will move on.

"There is no question that the U.K. tabloid press can be deeply inappropriate, and some of his concerns are valid," he said. "However, the only thing keeping the press interested at the moment is the Sussexes' constant and intentional headline-grabbing."

Harry has accused the British press of sowing paranoia in his personal relationship by hacking his phone, causing him to suspect his inner circle of betraying him. And he drew comparisons to Princess Diana, including in evidence a letter she sent to celebrity friend Michael Barrymore apologizing for the fact that a private meeting of theirs leaked to the media.

Harry pointed out she did not get a reply. Meanwhile, Piers Morgan, the former editor of the Daily Mirror, had described hearing rumors of their meetings in his memoir.

In a 55-page witness statement, Harry wrote: "The thought of Piers Morgan and his band of journalists earwigging into my mother's private and sensitive messages (in the same way as they have me) and then having given her a 'nightmare time' three months prior to her death in Paris, makes me feel physically sick and even more determined to hold those responsible, including Mr. Morgan, accountable for their vile and entirely unjustified behaviour."

Morgan has said he never hacked a phone nor instructed anyone else to hack a phone during his time at the Mirror. However, Harry also accused Morgan of pursuing a vendetta against him for filing the lawsuit to begin with, in September 2019.

The prince wrote: "Unfortunately, as a consequence of me bringing my Mirror Group claim, both myself and my wife have been subjected to a barrage of horrific personal attacks and intimidation from Piers Morgan, who was the Editor of the Daily Mirror between 1995 and 2004, presumably in retaliation and in the hope that I will back down, before being able to hold him properly accountable for his unlawful activity towards both me and my mother during his editorship."

Harry is yet to fully spell out why it is he believes his lawsuits will transform the landscape of the British media when so far he is himself suggesting the one against the Mirror titles has inspired more vitriol rather than less.

Harry and Meghan have between them filed 10 lawsuits since 2019, including eight against the media, of which they have won four, with four ongoing. Harry's only defeat so far was at the hands of the U.K. Home Office.

But despite their victories, the British media are no less hostile to the couple. Phone hacking is also widely regarded to have stopped already in the British media.

"If the stated aim is to get the press to stop being unkind about them, then going to war with the press feels like a bit of an odd way to go about achieving that aim," Coram James said. "Punching people often elicits a response (a punch back). Laying low often doesn't. Harry would be wise to stop punching, at least for a while."

Andrew Neil, a prominent U.K. broadcaster and former editor of the Murdoch-owned Sunday Times, told ITV's Good Morning Britain that "Harry is fighting yesterday's war and is fighting a war that he and others have actually won. I don't know what this is all about except his general vendetta against the media that he can't get rid of."

Jack Royston is Newsweek's chief royal correspondent based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.