Duke of Sussex Compares His Transparency to Royal Media Tactics in Memoir
Prince Harry subtly took aim at King Charles in his memoir Spare, reflecting on his 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview. In the book, Harry contrasted his openness with the "palace sources" and covert briefings used by the royal family for decades.
Harry wrote, "I failed to see how speaking to Oprah was any different from what my family and their staff had done for decades—briefing the press on the sly, planting stories." He further highlighted how family members, including Charles and Camilla, had collaborated on media projects, such as Charles’s 1994 autobiography with Jonathan Dimbleby.
The Duke of Sussex emphasized that he and Meghan took a different approach, choosing an interviewer "above reproach" and avoiding the use of vague terms like "Palace sources." The Oprah interview aired in 2021, a year after their exit from royal duties, while Meghan was pregnant with their daughter, Princess Lilibet.
