This weekend a new interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry aired. It was the first time the couple agreed to a side-by-side televised chat since their bombshell conversation on a picturesque terrace with Oprah Winfrey three years ago which offered a shocking glimpse into exactly how they had found life inside the Royal Family, sparking headlines around the world and prompting a statement from the late Queen.
The pair appeared in front of the camera this time to publicise an undeniably noble cause. Their new charitable initiative, The Parents’ Network, is a support system for families who have lost a child due to social media-based bullying or abuse. This support will come via small peer-led groups and expert-led educational events for parents in the US, UK, and Canada.
Unsurprisingly, the CBS reporter Jane Pauley, who was interviewing the couple, asked Meghan about her own experience with suicidal thoughts. During that famous chat with Oprah, Meghan revealed the level of scrutiny and online attacks she was subject to as a member of the Royal Family had left her considering suicide.
Meghan looked initially taken aback by Pauley’s question – saying “I wasn’t expecting it” – but then she replied that there was indeed a “through line” between her own experience and that of the families The Parents’ Network seeks to help.
“When you’ve been through any level of pain or trauma, I believe part of our healing journey – certainly part of mine – is being able to be really open about it,” she said. “I haven’t really scraped the surface on my experience but I do think I would never want anyone else to feel that way and I would never want someone else to be making those sorts of plans and I would never want someone else to not be believed.”
Online commentators were quick to deduce that the last point appeared to be a reference to Piers Morgan who said, as a presenter on Good Morning Britain, that he didn’t believe Meghan had been suicidal or had been offered scant support from the Palace for her mental health struggles.
Meghan concluded: “If me voicing what I have overcome will save someone or encourage someone in their life to really check in on them… then that’s worth it, I’ll take a hit for that.”
It’s hard to argue with her point – after all, sharing your own experience to help others going through something similar is often more effective than offering advice and the touchstone of the kind of support groups that will make up The Parents’ Network – but Meghan’s answer didn’t receive widespread approval.
Instead it predictably prompted a flurry of articles and social media comments criticising her for again bringing up the past – in particular her connection with the Royals – to publicise a project. Meanwhile Harry faced even more ire, with prominent media personalities pointing out the discrepancy between his decision to reveal highly personal information about his family in a documentary series and a bestselling memoir which led to online hate directed at the Royals, and his crusade to highlight cyber bullying.
This is a shame as The Parents’ Network actually sounds like the most interesting, worthwhile and potentially effective project Harry and Meghan have been involved in for some time. But I wonder whether the couple’s missteps in recent years will overshadow the initiative.
There’s no doubt that Brand Sussex has taken a drubbing since the chat with Oprah. Various commercial ventures seem to have spluttered out: the American Riviera Orchard website remains a landing page, the Netflix deal has produced little of note beyond the record-breaking documentary series, Meghan’s Archetypes podcast has yet to return after Spotify cancelled the contract. The couple seem to have struggled to sustain interest in projects that do not involve exploring their experience inside the Royal Family.
Even though the couple have collected awards celebrating their roles as humanitarians, we’ve heard little of their actual altruism – with the exception of Harry’s Invictus Games.
Rightly or wrongly, Harry and Meghan have a perception problem and need to stick something out. I hope The Parents’ Network is this. After all, there’s no doubt the dark side of social media poses a threat to children’s mental health and who better to shine a light on this than Harry and Meghan, protective parents who have experienced more than their fair share of online menace?
I hope we see them continue to work on the project, throwing their star power behind the issue, so the conversation can be redirected from their somewhat tarnished brand and onto their charitable efforts.