A Critic Believes This 1 Moment Was When Meghan Markle’s Reputation Began to ‘Unravel’

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex joined the royal family in 2018 and has since been faced with widespread criticism. While some believe may think Meghan has been hit with unfair press treatment since she became Prince Harry’s girlfriend in 2016, a critic can pinpoint to one moment when her image really took a hit.

Meghan Markle’s reputation began to ‘unravel’ in South Africa in 2019, according to a royal expert

Lorraine Kelly, a British TV personality and host of the show Lorraine, believes Meghan’s image began to ‘unravel’ in the public eye in South Africa in 2019.

For those who need a refresher, Meghan and Harry went on a royal tour of Africa in the fall of 2019. In South Africa, the couple also filmed a documentary about their trip. Called Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, the documentary showed royal followers their work on the continent as well as some personal confessions from the Sussexes. In one interview scene with reporter Tom Bradby, Meghan revealed she was struggling under the royal spotlight, especially when she was pregnant with her son Archie.

There had been a lot of attention on Meghan’s humanitarian work before she was a royal as well as during her time as the Duchess of Sussex. However, Kelly believes the documentary made people pay more attention to her personal struggles instead.

“It just seems terribly sad. They could have done so much good but it started to unravel in South Africa,” Kelly said, as reported by the Daily Mail. “She was highlighting incredible charities but it got overshadowed by her interview. And all the great work they had done, nobody was talking about that.”

Meghan Markle has been warned that her reputation could get even worse

Meghan and Harry are currently involved in a lawsuit against against Associated Newspapers Ltd (ANL), the company that owns a number of popular British papers like the Daily Mail and Metro. The Sussexes claim the newspapers’ allegedly invaded their privacy.

However, according to some law experts, the this lawsuit could potentially do a huge deal of damage to Meghan’s already fraught reputation in the U.K. In trying to disprove the Sussex’s claim, ANL’s legal team could unveil distasteful information about Meghan.

“If I was advising Meghan I’d be saying get out now,” attorney Mark Stephens said, according to Newsweek. “The risk is that how she curates her reputation, what she allows into the public domain and what she doesn’t, are now things that will be picked over by lawyers in cross-examination. The stakes are enormous because at the moment her reputation is not damaged particularly.”

Meanwhile, Eric Schiffer, chairman of Reputation Management Consultants, said Meghan and Harry’s lawsuit against media outlets is simply an “unwise” move.

“It’s a choice that I think many would say is not only unwise but shows a further level of lack of sophistication in their media approach,” he said. “If they think they’re going to create a big chilling effect on the media, it’s just going to escalate a desire for the media to uncover more.”